


Shattered Reality

by Beribits



Category: RWBY, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Confused Midoriya Izuku, Depressed Midoriya Izuku, F/M, Gen, Late Night Writing, M/M, Midoriya Izuku Has a Quirk, No beta we die like men here, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Recovery, Why Did I Write This?, mentions of abuse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-01
Updated: 2019-09-22
Packaged: 2019-10-02 01:50:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 13
Words: 55,743
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17255363
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Beribits/pseuds/Beribits
Summary: Reality truly is a strange thingIzuku Midoriya hadn't realized though, how fragile it really is.





	1. Falling Through the Sky

Reality

 

It’s a strange thing, really it is.

 

It’s a surreal, lonely, and maddening experience that everyone makes their way through. Yet, it was pretty fragile, especially if pressed the wrong way.

 

That’s what Izuku Midoriya had decided one day, one of the only thoughts he could really process and decide on through the painful ringing in his ears and the ache of his head.

 

He can’t really remember when the high pitched ringing started, all he could really remember was that he was pretty young. Maybe four or five. Around the same time he began seeing things that didn’t belong, dark shadows creeping around corners, tall lanky figures ready to snatch anybody they find in their grasp.

 

He often tries to think back on the moment where it all started, it’s hard to remember anything from that time at all. He couldn’t remember where he was, or what he was doing. All he could really process, was the overwhelming pain.

 

It had gone on for the longest time, maybe he was screaming, or maybe it was the creatures that roam about. All he knew, that there was screaming, ringing, and a loud buzz that never left him.

 

It only stopped when a deep, calming darkness consumed him. He had woken up after what felt like months, years later. Only to realize he had gone unconscious for a few hours after being taken to the hospital.

 

The ringing never stopped.

 

Sometimes it was worse in certain times, certain places. Making him want to scream and cry, to beg whatever unknown forces out there to make it stop. Other times it was a small, almost calming noise. It kept him grounded, let him know he was still there, that he was still real.

 

Reality and fiction became hard to tell apart as he grew up. He saw things others didn’t, but he swore up and down that the creatures were there. Coming in from the rips and tears that appeared out of nowhere.

 

At first, everyone had thought it was a Quirk of some kind, only to find out they were wrong when the poor, suffering boy had been taken to the doctor. Thanks to an extra joint in his pinky toe, he was dubbed Quirkless.

 

From then on everyone just figured something was going on in his head, and no matter how much the child would tell them about the creatures that were real, they wrote it off as him either overreacting or having an episode.

 

He can still remember the harsh betrayal he felt towards his childhood ‘friend’ when he told the boy about his Quirklessness and strange visions.

 

_So you really are a useless Deku. Quirkless AND crazy!_

 

The betrayal stung, yet for some reason he found himself following the boy. Maybe he felt a strange kind of comfort around him, after all. It was usually when he was around Katsuki that the ringing had dulled down the most and the monsters seemed to mostly stay away.

 

Maybe they were scared of him?

 

Or, at least, that was his theory until until the day that he had fallen down into the shallow river,

 

Well, _fell down_ isn’t quite the right way of putting it, the leader of their small group was actually _dragged down_.

 

They were following Katsuki, marching in time with his chants as he lit off sparks from his hands. Izuku had tried to ignore it, his child mind telling him it’d go away if he ignored it. At least that’s what the adults had told him to think.

 

He tried to keep his eyes off the strange crack that appeared in the water. To ignore the long, skeletal hand that reached out and slowly wrapped it’s bony fingers around Kacchan’s ankle.

 

_It’s not real_

 

_It’s not real_

 

_Besides, the monsters never touched Kacchan! They always stay away!_

 

He was almost able to convince himself, until he saw the boy dragged down and plunged into the water.

 

“Kacchan!”

 

The moment he had screamed, and raced to get to the boy he saw the creature startle and slink back to where it came from. Katsuki had been released from it’s hold, and looked up to the boys who still stood atop the log he had been dragged down from.

 

“Hey, are you okay?” Izuku had asked, holding out a hand. He was genuinely worried, what if that monster had hurt him?

 

He was about to ask another question until the red eyed boy growled and slapped his hand away. He had yelled at the greenette and pushed him into the water.

 

From that day the ringing in his ears had gotten louder, and much more painful. As if a switch had been flipped, like a protective wall had been broken down. He had blacked out for what seemed like an eternity before coming to again.

 

He was alone, and the world was silent. Not even the ringing reached his ears. He could many stars in the dark sky that night.

 

Deaf, he had gone deaf.

 

He had panicked, he screamed and heard nothing. He yelled for any of his companions, for anybody that could be there.

 

Not even his own voice reached his ears.

 

He had made his way home hours later, his mother asleep in her room.

 

Come morning Inko Midoriya never asked why her little son came home so late. So Izuku Midoriya never told.

 

He had regained his hearing the day after, the loud chaos of the world returning to him.

 

Even though he told his mother about the good news, it didn’t seem to thrill her as much as it had the boy.

 

He was 5 years old when he realized he was all alone in the world. His mother didn’t care, she couldn’t bring herself to. Afterall, the bottle is the only thing that could make her happy anymore.

 

Kacchan didn’t care, he didn’t even want Izuku _around_ him.

 

He grew up all alone, the children would stay away unless it was to tease him.

 

Over the years, the scars increased. The bruises did too.

 

The ringing grew worse with each passing day, reality seemed like it was on its last legs. He was always scared to move, the world he was a part of seemed so fragile that if he would take a single step it would all shatter and drag him down into a dark, dark void.

 

The monsters that scared him became more and more frequent. They became braver, as if fed on his fear. They would come closer and closer.

 

A few would even just sit next to him, a few gurgles here and there. Sometimes quieted whispers. They never hurt him, they never meant to scare him. Most of them anyway.

 

A few had come after him, chasing him down with a thirst for blood. He would narrowly escape them, if he was lucky they’d get tired or lose interest. He was mostly able to get away with little to no injuries.

  
  
  
  


Now here he is, standing at the top of the school roof.

 

The words Bakugo said to him rattled around in his mind, again, and again and again.

 

The ringing in his ears became deafening as those words echoed above it all.

 

_If you want a quirk so badly, there might actually be a way. Pray you’ll get a quirk in the next life, and take a swan dive off the roof._

His breathing hitched as the words looped in his head one more time.

 

He had already removed his shoes, not bothering to write a note.

 

Who would care?

 

His mother certainly wouldn’t, she hadn’t for a long time.

 

Kacchan?

 

He almost laughed, of course he wouldn’t care. It was Katsuki who gave him the idea in the first place. He’d probably consider it an achievement on his part.

 

Finally getting rid of the pest that had been bothering him almost his entire life.

 

Izuku took one last deep breath, looking up to the sky and letting the fading light of the setting sun warm his face. The only comfort he had felt in a long time.

 

He swallowed hard, as he leaned forward; letting gravity take over.

 

As he fell, the ringing faded. For once, his mind was finally clear.

 

Time seemed to slow as he fell, every second was stretched out to an eternity. As if time had warped itself.

 

He slowly opened his eyes, he had expected to see concrete mere inches from his face. Ready to catch him and aid him in finally putting an end to his suffering.

 

Instead his vision was filled with cracks, cracks in everything. The air around him was fractured, spiderwebbed. It was like everything was breaking around him.

 

Reality was breaking.

 

He didn’t have very much time to react to any of it. He was still falling, and before he knew it the sound of glass shattering rang out all around him. The noise seemed to be amplified by something, ringing in his head loudly.

 

It was so much louder than the ringing ever was.

 

A scream tore from his throat as he crashed through something, shards burying themselves into him.

 

Everything had suddenly gone silent once again, his voice was taken and the shattering faded away as he realized he was in free fall.

 

The familiar sight of the school was suddenly gone, instead he was surrounded by darkness and streaks of color that raced past him as he seemed to fall faster, and faster.

 

He flailed, panicked and confused as he felt himself beginning to unravel.

 

He was everything, yet nothing at the same time. He was eternity, yet he nonexistence itself.

 

Izuku swore he felt something break inside him as he crashed through what felt like a barrier, one, two, so many in under a moment.

 

So many different places flashed before his eyes as he fell through existence itself.

 

He saw so many things.

 

A world of ice, oceans frozen over and home to beasts of devastating power.

 

A place of cold, endless churning darkness where dark, malicious creatures fought  each other. Desperate for survival, desperate to escape their prison.

 

A world, that felt so warm and welcoming, he felt drawn to it. From where he fell across the sky he could see a field of flowers, that seemed akin of fire itself. It spanned across an entire kingdom. A fire spitting queen stood at the edge of the field, crying.

 

There was so much to see, if he dared to look away he would miss another view of beauty.

 

He saw so much beauty, so much tragedy in all he saw. Wanting to see it again, and again. It made him want to cry.

 

He continued to fall, feeling himself further unravel, blending into the endless existence all around him. He felt himself beginning to fade away, to dissolve.

 

He would have vanished away in peace, if he hadn’t felt something crash harshly into him. He felt no malice from it, none of the coldness and cruelty he’s faced all his life. His bodiless yell of surprise echoed and quickly diminished into the void around him.

 

He felt another harsh wave of power crash into him, again and again. He was slowing down, and whatever had been striking him, slowing him down had disappeared.

 

His falling slowed, but it still felt like he was racing through the worlds.

 

He was no longer unravelling, if anything he was being stitched back together again. It hurt like hell, it felt like his body was no longer his own. A foreigner in his own body.

 

Nothing though, could prepare him for the agonizing pain of slamming into the ground as pain raced through every cell in his body. His hearing faded in and out as he struggled to draw in a breath. His body seemingly hesitant to respond to it’s owner.

 

He suddenly felt a weight on his chest, pressing down on him harshly.

 

He gulped as he tried to breath in more air, hearing muffled words being spoken to him. His head spun as he tried to make sense of what was being said to him. He was unable to say anything as he faded into the depths of unconsciousness.

 

Welcoming the darkness with open arms, embracing what he had thought was finally death.

 


	2. Running About in a Strange Place

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku wakes up in a strange place called 'Beacon Academy'. Unaware where, or what Beacon truly is.

He heard the voices first, through the thick and murky blackness of fleeting sleep. They sounded muffled, and so far away.

Then came the painful ache that ran through his body, as if he had been ripped apart and put back together in a hurry. It felt like he was a messy ragdoll haphazardly sewn together. 

Slowly, the voices started to become clear. No longer distant.

“He’s been out for a while.” A girl’s voice.

“Well, you and Weiss did go all out.” Another girl.

“He was trying to kill us!” Another girl huffed. “Besides, if I hadn’t done what I did you and Blake would have been badly injured.”

Izuku felt confused at hearing that. When had be done that? 

He tried to search his foggy mind for any clue as to what they were talking about, it was hard to look back. He couldn’t remember much else other than pain, the bright colors, something slamming into him. Then crashing into the ground. 

“I’m starting to think it might not have been on purpose.” Yet another girl, she sounded a lot calmer than the others. “As soon as we were able to knock him unconscious, he seemed to return to normal. I’m thinking it might have been a case of losing control of his semblance.” 

Semblance? What is that?

“Either way, he should still answer for his actions. He could have hurt someone.” One of them protested. He guessed that may have been Weiss.

He tried again and again to look back, a feeling of guilt starting to build in his gut. They were talking about him, they had to be. What did he do? 

His mind started to block out the voices as he tried to remember about the events they were talking about. When had he hurt someone? Attacked someone? Where was he?

His mind started to swarm with multitudes of questions, one after another, each one building up nothing but dread and confusion in him. He did his best to keep himself still, so they would leave and he could panic in peace. It was hard, with each new shudder came a new wave of pain. 

“Well we’re not doing him any favors by just standing over him and pestering him in his sleep. We have that essay to do remember?”

“Nooooo.” 

“Come on Ruby, the sooner we get it done the better.” One sighed, sounding like she was dreading it just as much. 

They began talking about something called Grimm, and Huntsman history before there was the sound of a door opening and closing. It actually sounded a lot louder than it should have.

As soon as they left Izuku sat up in a hurry, grunting in pain as stars exploded in his vision. He groaned and held his head as he slowly laid back down, gripping his head tightly. He felt a harsh pain radiating from his side as well, and a sting on his face.

He panted as he waited for the pain to subside. 

“W-What the heck..?” He muttered, slowly opening his eyes to dulled down lights. He stayed there for a while, letting his eyes adjust as he tried to pinpoint the pain he felt.

He swallowed hard as he slowly sat up, taking his time this time. He pressed his back to the wall his bed was beside and looked around the somewhat dark room. 

It was pretty small, surprised that 4 other people could fit into the room. There was the bed, a small desk with a few jars and bottles of medical supplies, and small mirror off to the side. 

He bit his lip as he moved forward, slowly making his way off the bed. His legs wobbled as he took the blanket with him, wrapping it around his shivering body. 

“What is this place…” He muttered, stepping forward, using the desk as a brace to help him walk. He struggled with moving forward, trying to ponder where he could be.

“I fell…” He muttered, leaning on the desk. “I jumped off the roof. But...did I imagine all of that? Falling through...through what?” He asked aloud. It felt like he fell through infinity...but that’s not possible he doesn’t have a quirk.

“Maybe I hit the ground sooner than I expected and hit my head pretty hard.” He sighed, the dread settling in his stomach, he failed…

His mind then jumped to what the girls were talking about.

“No...no maybe they weren’t talking about me.” He decided, refusing to give what he heard them say a second thought. Maybe they were gossiping about someone else, and figured his room was fine since he had been unconscious. Or it seemed that way.

He groaned as he held his head, a new headache bringing him out of his thoughts. 

He sighed as he adjusted to the painful throbbing.

“Better a headache than the...ringing…” He started to trail off, eyes widening. 

The ringing, the sound that always filled his ears no matter the time of day. The sound that had plagued him ever since he was a child.

It was gone.

For the first time, ever, his head felt clear. There was no ringing, he couldn’t see any of the monsters that would come after him. 

He felt...okay.

He shuddered a bit, wrapping the thin blanket around himself tightly. It felt strange to think that. To even consider the thought that he was okay.

“Maybe the doctors figured out what was wrong with me, gave me the right medication.” He sighed to himself. “Heh...maybe I can stop being called the ‘crazy kid’.” He said hopefully. Despite knowing that the nickname would never leave, it was something that stuck since he was in elementary.

He walked towards the door before stopping, and looking over to the mirror beside the desk. He grimaced at the sight.

His thin, pale body covered in bandages. He had no shirt, which explained why he was so cold, at least he had pants on. His chest was all wrapped up, there was a lot of gauze on his side as well. Then his arms, there was hardly any bare skin other than his fingertips. At least there wasn’t too much pain there, just a little soreness.

There were a few wrappings around his head, and some bandages around his face in some places. There was a large on the side of his face held in place by some tape. It itched a bit, annoying him.

He grunted and pulled at it, the tape pulling at his skin a bit. It came off with ease after a moment and he threw the bandage in the trash bin. He gasped at the sight in the mirror. A gash stretched from the left side of his lower jaw to right under his left eye.

He stepped forward, grazing at the tender skin. He frowned a bit at the realization that it was probably going to scar. 

Seriously, what did he do to himself? How badly did his fall go?

He stepped back and looked at the room.

“Must have gone pretty bad…” He answered himself. His frown deepened as he thought about where he was. “They probably saved me somehow after I splattered onto the pavement...considering my luck after I was considered stable they just shoved me into some kind of mental hospital and just left me here.” He muttered, clutching onto the blanket tightly.

“Mom probably just signed off...not that she would care…” He bit his lip. His eyes watering a bit.

He was alone. 

In a place he didn’t want to be in.

Everybody was probably against him in this place...just like every other place. He was just some crazy kid who’s voice didn’t matter. He was just the kid who tried to kill himself because he couldn’t handle his ‘hallucinations’.

He began to draw blood from his biting, he yelled as he felt something in him snap. His bandaged fist collided with the mirror, shattering his angry image. He drew in a short gasp as he felt a pain in his fist. A bit of blood drawn, thankfully it seemed pretty shallow.

He stepped further back, careful not to step on any of the glass with his bare feet. He looked at his fist, shaking his head. His small bout of anger fading out. 

‘Don’t act on your anger, it’s inappropriate.’

‘Why are you getting so worked up? What do you have to be angry about?’

‘Just shut up and listen to the adults. Stop getting upset, and don’t tell anymore lies kid. Monsters don’t exist.’

‘Stupid Deku! Useless and crazy!’’

Right, he couldn’t act on his anger. He stepped away and walked towards the door, burying his anger deep down where it belonged. Where it was meant to stay.

He swallowed hard and put a hand on the doorknob, giving it a little twist. He half expected it to be locked, yet much to his surprise it opened with ease. He wasn’t locked in the room...was that a good thing or…?

He shook his head and decided not to think too much on it. If he was able to get out due to the bad security then that was on them. He’d be damned if he was staying in a crazy house. 

He stepped out, expecting to see more white walls, instead seeing what looked like a regular hallway. With light and dark browns. Granted it was a pretty long hallway his room was in.

“Good to know they like to change things up a bit.” He sighed, tossing the blanket inside the room before walking forward. It was much warmer in the hall than it was in the room.

He didn’t have much a plan, just picking a direction and walking. It was his best plan, if he ran into someone...he’d rather try his luck with fleeing rather than talking his way out.

It someone could tell him where he was without causing him trouble, then bonus points.

 

\---

“You should be studying Jaune.” Pyrrha teased lightly, watching him rustle through a bag as he walked. There were a few comics as well as the textbooks she made him pack.

“I know I know but, come on aren’t you curious? That kid just seemed to go berserk, I just wanna make sure he’s okay ya know? People are saying he just lost control of his semblance, but he seemed so scared.” He sighed.

The young woman looked to her friend, she remembered being there. She had landed a hard blow to him after he lashed out at Jaune, scratching at him, after a moment he fled from their area, bringing chaos wherever he ran.

Then he ran into Team RWBY, and he didn’t stand a chance. The damage she had done had done enough to start to have dazed him, and start to snap him out of whatever panic or stupor he was in.

“It’s good you care about others Jaune, but don’t you think that he may still be recovering? What makes you so sure he may have regained consciousness by now?” She asked. “If he’s still resting we may not want to disturb him.” 

“But Ruby and the others went to see him, I don’t know if they went today. But I do know they went yesterday. Either way, if he wakes up at least it’ll be to a pair of friendly faces.” He smiled at her, getting a smile back. 

He may not be the brightest, but he most certainly had a heart of gold. 

“If he’s not awake, then I’ll study. I promise.” He said, turning into the infirmary hall. “But uh...would you mind helping me? I’ve been having some trouble in history.” He asked.

“Of course, I think I may need a refresher as well.” She agreed, she was about to suggest they study at a new cafe when she spotted a confused person wandering around. She saw him exit the infirmary and into the halls of the vast school.

“Oh dear.” She sighed, grabbing Jaune’s arm and pulling him back through the entrance they just came from. There, further down the corridor was the boy. That mess of green curls made him easy to recognize.

“Pyrrha what are...oh. There he is.” Jaune said, lowering his voice into a whisper as he scooted forward a bit. As if he was watching a wild animal. Easy to startle. 

The boy looked around, seeming a bit nervous, as if he carefully planned each step. He also seemed to be tapping his chin with a bandaged hand, he seemed to be talking to himself.

“Well, shall we go over and say hello?” Pyrrha asked Jaune, who was scooting forward by the slightest bit. 

“Yeah, let’s go.” He was about to start running forward and opened his mouth to yell when Pyrrha stopped him. 

“We don’t want to startle him Jaune.” She reminded him, getting a ‘oh yeah’ look from him as he moved forward. A brisk pace, but hopefully it wouldn’t be enough to scare him should they be spotted.

In no time they were right behind him, and they could hear what he was muttering about, one hand rested on his arm while the other tapped away at his chin.

“Somebody must have used their quirk, because at that height I should have died especially if I hit my head on the edge of the pond. But that doesn’t explain the weird stuff I saw...accidental quirk usage? No, probably not. Because what good would a hallucination quirk do to a falling person. I mean where the heck even is this place?”

The two older teens looked at each other in concern at the mention of falling. Did this kid even remember anything about what happened? And when he talked about falling, it almost sounded like he had done it on purpose.

That thought sent waves of dread and fear rolling through them. Should this kid even be allowed to wander around? What if he tried to jump again, assuming he really had been doing it on purpose the first time?

Jaune stiffened a bit and sighed, moving forward a bit to tap the kid on the shoulder. 

“Hey there.”

The kid yelped in surprise and whirled around, backing up as much as possible. He stood a few feet away from the two, eyes darting between the two.

Pyrrha saw the scar on the left side of his face and cringed, she hadn’t thought she had hurt him that badly…

“Easy there bud. Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you.” Jaune put his hands up, trying to show he was friendly. The boy watched in confusion, and a bit of fear. 

He didn’t answer, he drew his lips into a thin line as he took one step back.

“My name is Pyrrha.” She stepped forward, a smile on her face. “And this is Jaune. May I ask your name?” She asked.

He shifted a bit, she could see the gears in his head were turning. He was thinking on his answer.

“Where am I?” He asked, his voice full of fear.

Honestly he had every right to be. Two random strangers in armor approaching this poor, defenseless kid? Yeah, they’d be scared too. 

They looked at each other, then to him.

“You’re at Beacon Academy.” Jaune answered, taking another step forward. “We found you, and you kinda lost it. You were subdued, we didn’t mean to hurt you but-”

He stepped further back, wrong words. He looked even more scared now, unsure if he could really trust them. They did this to him?

Pyrrha gave Jaune a look and tried to do a bit of damage control, seeing that the boy was now more skittish than ever. 

“What Jaune meant, is that you’ve been out of commission for three days. Your semblance seemed to spiral out of control, and then-”

“Three days!” He exclaimed, surprised.

Jaune sighed. “Listen, we can explain everything. How about we sit down and talk about this? We can go to the-”

“Well if it isn’t Jaune.” A new voice rang out, the three looking to the side. “Oh, look. He’s with that little freak from the other day.” He laughed. “What, trying to make friends with the kid Jaune-y boy?” 

Jaune frowned and turned to the newcomer, Pyrrha standing with him. “Not right now Cardin. We’ve got more important things to do.” He said, looking over his shoulder to the kid. It was obvious his anxiety was only growing with each passing second.

He watched the three exchange words, but he had tuned them out after a while. A deep rift of unease and lack of trust had already been placed, let alone not knowing where on earth he was. 

“Well I’m trying to talk to him and-”

“Jaune.”

Jaune continued arguing with Cardin, until his attention was snatched by Pyrrha. 

“Pyrrha what is it?” He asked, turning away from the other student and looking to her.

“He’s gone.” She said, looking at the spot where he had been a moment ago.

“...Oh crap.”

“Way to go Jaune-y boy.”

Cardin laughed as the two ran off in the only direction he could have gone. Of course only someone like Jaune would lose a stupid kid so easily.

The moment he was sure they were looking away he had darted off, despite the protests of his still aching body. He rounded the corner of a different hall and kept running, unsure how far he would really get. 

In retrospect it was pretty stupid to assume he’d be able to run away from anybody in his current state.

Not to mention he was in some place called ‘Beacon Academy’. If he had to guess, which it was the only thing he could do at the moment, it was some kind of hero school. They must be some kind of multi faceted hero course, maybe they offered a medical training program for those with healing quirks. 

Certainly would make sense why he’s there. 

If they had advanced healing quirks, that’d certainly make it easier to save him from his terrible failure.

He rounded another corner, and as he thought he would have a moment to catch his breath he collided into someone, falling over with a yell. 

He groaned as he sat up, rubbing the back of his head. He quickly stood up and looked at the person he ran into. Gasping as he saw it was an adult. 

He was a bit rotund, sporting a bushy mustache and a lot of gray hair. 

“Oh, well look who it is. Good to see you’re up and about young man. Has anyone been to-hey! Where are you going!” He called after the boy after he took a moment to catch his breath to run away. 

Izuku didn’t give the man a second thought, if anything he found himself running faster. He seemed like a higher up considering the clothing he wore. If he already had students chasing after him there was no doubt that he’d come after him soon after. 

He felt his mind racing, eyes darting around looking for somewhere to hide, somewhere to run. He quickly made another turn, finding himself running up a set of stairs. He panted, sweating up a storm as he climbed, thinking he heard footsteps behind him.

He was about to turn the corner of the platform when he met yet another knew face. He gasped and stepped back, trying to back pedal. He had backed up a bit, rounding the corner he previously turned in fear. 

He was about to turn around and try his chance with the direction he came back in when he realized he lost his footing. He paled in realization that he was about to take a hard fall down the stairs. 

He saw the stairs racing towards him, he clenched his eyes shut and prepared for pain.

Only to never feel any.

He opened his eyes, seeing he was mere inches away from the first step he would have gone crashing down. He gasped to himself as he realized he was floating, he yelped in surprise as something began moving him as he was set on the ground.

He looked up to see a stern looking woman, dressed nicely. Her blond hair was in a bun, a light curl hanging to the side of her face. Her green eyes gave him a look that made him want to run for the hills.

“Running about, and causing trouble once again young man?” She asked.

The two teenagers he had first met suddenly raced up the stairs, stopping at the platform to see the boy and one of their professors there. Watching him. 

The blonde one was about to say something but shut his mouth at the sight of the woman that glared at the boy who shifted nervously under her gaze.

He gulped.

Well, no more running for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everybody!
> 
> So I've deicded to go with RWBY for the first part of Izuku's journey.
> 
> I'm sorry this took so long, I had been brainstorming when and where it should take place and how, and I finally came up with this. 
> 
> It is taking place in Volume 3.
> 
> I hope you guys enjoy and have a nice day/night.


	3. A Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku has a talk with Professor Ozpin and Professor Goodwitch

Izuku said nothing as he trained his eyes to the ground, feeling the gaze of two adults in the room. They hadn’t said anything in the past few minutes, only making his anxiety worse.

 

He was already in hot water, with causing as much chaos as he supposedly did. And causing a few disturbances in the halls. 

 

He was scared to say anything first, thinking that if he did it could be counted as grounds for some kind of punishment. Not to mention he wasn’t even sure he would say.

 

What  _ could  _ he say?

 

‘Oh hey sorry for causing trouble after you guys probably saved me when I didn’t even  _ want _ to be saved. By the way what the heck is Beacon Academy?’

 

He couldn’t really just say that, not here. Not in this place. If he admitted to any suicidal tendencies then he may as well kiss his freedom goodbye forever. 

 

The gears in his mind turned over and over, still trying to come up with a solution of some kind, some way to get out of all this.

 

“So.” He jolted at the sound of the man speaking. “Would you mind telling us how you got onto school grounds, and why you attacked our students?” He asked, a calculating tone to his voice.

 

Izuku hesitantly looked up. “Huh?”

 

The man sat up a bit straighter, his hands folding onto one another as he watched the boy for any sign of deceit.

 

The woman then chose to speak up. “A few days ago you had been found on school grounds, and when one of our students approached you, you had attacked them.”

 

Izuku swallowed hard as he looked at her. Once again he searched his mind for any kind of memory of what they were talking about.

 

“What?” He asked, confusion on his features. “What are you talking about?” He asked, looking at them. He bit his lip as he was met with a bout of silence. “I-I don’t know what you guys are talking about. H-How would I attack someone? It’s not like I have a lot of strength in my punches.” He managed to get out.

 

There was a frown and a narrowing of eyes from the woman, before she looked to the man who was listening patiently. He nodded at her and she pulled up something from her tablet, walking over holding it so he could see. 

 

He looked at her for a moment before slowly lowering his eyes to the screen. There was a label in the corner of the screen. Cam 12. There was a timestamp that ran with every second.

 

There was a calm area, undisturbed until there was a bright flash of light. There was a loud shattering sound that made the boy flinch. Once the light had died down it showed that he was lying there on the ground, unconscious. 

 

He looked ragged, like he struggled to breathe. He was deathly pale, dark bags prominent beneath his eyes. His unconscious body twitched every once in a while, small and hard to see most of the time. 

 

Before long someone came running towards him. It was the blonde young man he met in the halls while wandering around. He bit his lip as the boy tried to shake him awake, looking concerned. He looked over to the redhead, and two other strangers he hadn't seen.

 

He was unresponsive the first few attempts to wake him. Though either the 4th or 5th time his eyes snapped open. He laid there for a moment before there was a violent shattering and he lashed out at him.

 

Izuku watched in horror as he gazed at himself on the screen, The air around him was filled with cracks and a creatures started to slip through them. His eyes were blank, as he stared ahead in horror, unseeing of the reality in front of him.

 

Before he could do much damage to the blonde the redhead had jumped in and managed to deal a blow to him, Causing the deep gash in the side of his face. He seemed to awake from his state, somewhat, before he fled.

 

From there the footage cut to him versing 4 girls, he honestly had no chance and had been overpowered relatively easily. The only threat he had really seemed to pose, was the large rush of energy as more cracks appeared in the air around him. It looked like he was about to unleash something, before he had been slammed to the ground. 

 

There had been a bit more of a struggle before a hard blow to his head finally rendered him unconscious. After that, all the spiderwebbed fractures in the air just faded away and seemed to heal themselves. Whatever creatures, a few a recognized, had slipped through had been dragged back.

 

He saw a few shots of startled students looking relieved that the sudden appearance of monsters had ceased. A majority of them were unharmed, the worst of the injuries looked like a broken arm.

 

He felt a chill run up his spine as the woman closed the video out, and set the tablet down before looking at him.

 

“Do you still not understand what we were talking about?” She asked, an edge to her voice.

 

Izuku looked down, still trying to tug at the threads of the past and unable to find anything. The most concerning thing was how on earth did he do that? It wasn’t possible, it shouldn’t  _ be _ possible. He was Quirkless!

 

“I-I don’t…” He managed, still trying to process what he saw. “H-How would I even do that? It’s not possible!” 

 

The man perked up a bit at that. “What do you mean, it’s not possible?” He asked.

 

Izuku growled in irritation, shouldn’t they know this? If they had his records on file they should know this, what’s the point in making him say it?

 

“I’m Quirkless!” He unintentionally raised his voice. 

 

No matter how many times it was said to him, or how many times he said it aloud, it still hurt him somehow. A painful sting he would never be rid of.

 

The two stare at him, confusion on their features.

 

“Excuse me?” The woman asked.

 

Izuku bit his lip before answering. 

 

“I don’t have a Quirk.” He said. “I have no powers that ever manifested. The doctor never said I would, it is impossible! I don’t have a Quirk, and I never will. So whatever that was...I couldn’t have caused it. Because I have nothing!”

 

It already hurt to have to say it, to explain his shame as well?

 

It made him feel sick. A deep, churning feeling in his insides; it made him want to hide away from them. To just bury himself in a dark corner and pretend he didn’t exist.

 

The two looked at him in mild shock before glancing at each other. The man stood up after a moment, sending a bout of panic through the boy.

 

“Glynda, may I speak to this young man alone?” He asked, his tone rather serious. 

 

“What?” She asked. “Oz, he may-”

 

“I don’t think he’s that much of a threat Glynda. Let me speak with him.” He gently cut her off, reassuring her. It made Izuku feel nervous, well  _ more _ nervous. 

 

She watched Oz for a moment before sighing and walking off, stepping into the elevator and leaving.

 

A violent chill seemed to seep into the atmosphere as a heavy silence settled between the two. He kept his gaze on the wall, feeling the eyes of the man on him. He tensed as he heard the man walk past him. 

 

He started to fiddle with his hands as the footsteps suddenly stopped, and the sound of small clinks filled the silence. A moment later the man came into view again, and he placed a small cup in front of him, keeping one for himself. 

 

Izuku looked down and saw a cup of tea before him. A bit of steam coming from the hot beverage.

 

He looked up and saw the man take a small sip of his drink before setting the drink down and sitting down. He opened a file of sorts as Izuku watched the tea, hesitantly picking it up and taking a small sip.

 

He gingerly set it down after a moment, letting out a sigh. The hot liquid felt like a relief to his cold hands, and his freezing insides. The tightness in his chest seemed to lessen, offering a bit of relief.

 

“So…” The man, Oz, spoke up.

 

Izuku looked up, the man staring straight at him.

 

“I feel that we may have gotten off on the wrong foot young man. Perhaps we should introduce ourselves.” He straightened his posture. “My name is Ozpin, the head of this facility.” He then gestured to the young man who was taken aback by the new friendliness.

 

Why wouldn’t they know his name? Unless they couldn’t find it.

 

“U-Uh...Midoriya Izuku.” He answered.

 

“I see.” He hummed. “So, young Midoriya, are you aware of where you are?” He asked.

 

He shook his head. “I heard someone say this place is called Beacon Academy, but I have no idea what that is. Is it one of the hero schools?” He asked.

 

The man raised an eyebrow at that. Hero schools? Heroes? What was that supposed to mean? Is that what they called Huntsman where he was from?

 

“Yes, that’s one way of putting it.” He answered. “Are you aware of why you’re here?”

 

He saw the boy cringe and he averted his gaze, muttering something under his breath. He hadn’t quite caught it.

 

“What was that?” He asked.

 

He saw Izuku shake his head. “I’m sure you already know…” He muttered. “What’s the point in making me say it?” He kept his eyes averted, itching at the bandages.”Can we just...just skip it?” He asked, daring to look up for a moment.

 

Ozpin watched the greenette’s eyes for a moment, he saw a glimmer of guilt, of fear. He started to click a few pieces together, but still had to confirm his thoughts.

 

“Yes, I suppose we can leave the subject alone for now.” He answered, seeing him sigh in relief. 

 

“However, I feel that there may be a bigger issue to address.” 

 

“S-Such as?” Izuku looked at him, unsure what he meant. Did he cause some other chaotic event in his rush through the halls? What else could he have possibly done?

 

“Tell me young man, where are you from?” He asked, taking another sip of his drink. 

 

“E-Excuse me?” Izuku tilted his head. “What do you mean?”

 

“You heard me, where are you from?”

 

Izuku frowned, did they really not know? What kind of place was this? Was he wrong about it being a special facility hero school? 

 

Was this place even  _ in _ Japan?

 

How bad was his condition if he was taken overseas somewhere?

 

“I-I’m from Japan, Mustafu Japan…” He answered slowly. There was a moment of silence, and he felt himself shrink under the man’s gaze.

 

“I see.” Ozpin said after a moment, looking for any sign of lying. “Have you ever heard of something called, Dust? Or the Grimm?” 

 

“Uh...what? Of course I’ve of heard of dust, but why is that important? Though I’ve never heard of Grimm, what are they supposed to be some kind of villain organization?”

 

Ozpin was taken aback by this, confused for a moment. 

 

“No, no they’re not.” He sighed. “Judging by your lack of knowledge of the Grimm, it is safe to assume you have no idea what I mean when I refer to Dust.”

 

Izuku fiddled with his hands a bit more before looking up again. “U-Uh...sir. Where are you going with this?” He asked.

 

Ozpin let a smile reach his face as he took a sip of his tea once more.

 

“Have you ever heard of a place called Vale?” He asked.

 

Izuku shook his head, combing through his mind for that location. Maybe they learned about it in one class? No, no they didn’t. He never even  _ heard _ of a place called Vale.

 

“N-No…”

 

“How about Remnant?” He asked.

 

“No…” 

 

Ozpin stood up. “So, I take it you are not from this world.” He said calmly. He watched Izuku freeze.

 

After a moment the young man had started to laugh, he shook his head and held his head. Ozpin frowned to himself as he watched him, waiting for him to stop.

 

It had felt like forever before the uncomfortable laughing slowly came to a stop, the boy going quiet after a moment before looking up at Ozpin.

 

“What the heck are you even talking about?” He asked, getting a raised eyebrow. “What, are you referring to a planet or something? Is this all some kind of stupid joke?” His demeanor changed quickly, coming off as a bit angered.

 

“I woke up with no idea where I am, or how I got here. I should be dead, but I guess not. And you, some kind of shrink I guess, is randomly asking me all these...all these random questions! Remnant, Dust, Grimm, what the hell does any of this have to do with anything!” 

 

Ozpin listened to him rant and rave about how nothing was making sense, and asking his own questions that seemed to make no sense. While he started to pace, Ozpin grabbed the tablet Glynda had set down and started to put up an image.

 

“Young man.” Ozpin said, raising his voice to get the teen’s attention. 

 

“Huh?” 

 

“Come here.” He gestured for him to come over before pulling up a map of the world, showing him.

 

“You say you are from a place called Mustafu, Japan. Correct?” He asked.

 

“Yeah, that’s what I said.” Izuku mumbled. 

 

Ozpin hummed to himself as he looked over the map, not finding any kind of matching location. “It seems, your home does not exist.” He said after a moment.

 

“What?”

 

“Look for yourself.” Ozpin handed him the tablet, and watched him look over the world map, growing increasingly worried and confused. 

 

“N...No.” He said, looking over the map again and again, finding no familiar landmarks, continents, anything!

 

“This...what kind of map is this supposed to be?” Izuku asked.

 

“A map of Remnant.” Ozpin answered.

 

“What is Remnant?” Izuku asked loudly.

 

Ozpin hummed to himself. “Remnant is the name of this world.”

 

Izuku shook his head and looked at the tablet. “H-How do you search on this thing?” He asked, getting an answer after a few presses of buttons. Izuku got the tablet back and quickly typed in ‘World Map’. 

 

He looked over the results, seeing the same map the man had shown him. He shook his head and typed in ‘Mustafu, Japan’. He got no results back, it had offered a corrected phrase though.

 

“There’s no way…” He murmured.

 

He quickly typed in ‘Map of Earth’ hoping to find what he was looking for.

 

He got no results back.

 

“There’s...there’s no way…” He trailed off, staring at the screen in disbelief. He was at a loss for words as Ozpin gently took the tablet from him.

 

Immediately Izuku started to think worse case scenario, his mind trying to come up with the most logical solutions as to what was happenings. 

 

“This isn’t possible. How could any of this happen? It shouldn’t be possible.” He suddenly stopped, looking at Ozpin. “Am I dead?” He asked, thinking that made the most sense.

 

“What?” Ozpin set the tablet down.

 

“Am I dead?” He asked again. “I jumped off the roof, and then I wake up here! I had to have died, there is no way I could have survived that fall! This has to be some kind afterlife, how else would I end up here. There was nobody around me, so it couldn’t have been someone else’s quirk. There’s no possible way it could have been me because I’m Quirkless and I have no power. Yeah, yeah being dead makes a lot more sense than anything else!” 

 

Ozpin let him think aloud, trying to get all of his thoughts out. What concerned him most was him admitting to attempting suicide. That may be a problem in the future…

 

Although, the mention of Quirks it had piqued his interest. From how he mentioned it, Quirks must be similar to Semblances in a way. He made a mental note to ask him about it before stopping him on his rant; seeing him start to turn blue. 

 

“Young Midoriya, I can assure you that you are very much alive.” He smiled. “You have not passed, far from it actually. It seems you have traversed across worlds though. Perhaps you are not as ‘Quirkless’ as you believe you are.”

 

Izuku merely looked at him in shock.

 

“Welcome to Remnant.”


	4. New Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku meets some new friends, though not all of them come across as nice.

The next day after his conversation with Ozpin, Izuku was still reeling. They had spent almost the entire day talking about the differences between their worlds. Every so often sending Izuku into the downward spiral of panic and theories. 

 

He learned more about the terms of the world he was in. Dust, a tool that many utilize in order to harness elements and other powers. The Grimm were monsters that were attracted to negativity, they had been around for a long, long time. They were humanity’s biggest threat. 

 

That’s where the Huntsman came in, trained individuals who were often sent out to dispatch Grimm and keep civilizations safe.

 

Izuku drew a few parallels to Heroes and Huntsman, Grimm and Villains. One of the bigger parallels he drew was between Semblances and Quirks. 

 

He had to explain that Quirks were powers that humans had, and were dependant on the genetics from their parents. How it was possible for a Quirk to mutate and either be a combination of the parents’ powers or an amplified version.

 

Semblances on the other hand, were more like manifestations of the soul. They were usually different from each person, and very rarely hereditary. 

 

“So how would you classify your power?” Ozpin had asked.

 

“I...I don’t know. I mean it has to be a Quirk, because I was in my world...but that doesn’t explain much! How would I get a Quirk like that? It doesn’t line up.”

 

“So the possibility of it mutating is out of the question? Is it not possible for a child’s Quirk to not resemble anything of their parents?”

 

Izuku stopped at that. “W-Well...yeah. But, it’s rare, like really rare! There’s a very small percent of that actually  _ happening _ . A-And why would it just suddenly manifest as I’m jumping off the roof? Of all the times..” he trailed off, running a hand through his hair, then he stopped. “But...but it didn’t…” 

 

Ozpin had raised an eyebrow, watching the young man think to himself. He allowed him to mutter to himself for a short time before bringing him back to reality.

 

“Well, either way. Assuming this power is indeed a Quirk; we shouldn’t put the idea of you manifesting a Semblance aside just in case.”

 

“A Semblance…” He muttered. There was a bit of silence for a moment, before he looked up. “So...what now?” He asked. “I have no idea how to get home, or how to control... _ this _ . So...what now?” He asked. A pit of dread and fear appeared in his stomach. He didn’t actually realize how alone he really was until that moment.

 

“Well…” Ozpin sighed. “At the moment, it may be a bit wiser to keep your origins to yourself.”

 

“I...kinda figured as much.” He mumbled.

 

“There are students here, although a majority are a bit older than you; I’m sure you could blend right in given time. It may be wisest to enroll you here.” He put that on the table.

 

Izuku looked at him. “So you could keep an eye on me?”

 

“Exactly.” Ozpin nodded. “And, perhaps with time we’ll be able to help you control your power.” He hummed. 

 

\----

 

Izuku went over the conversation in his mind again and again. Clutching the small journal Ozpin had given him in his hands. It was to record things, and keep track of his actions. He saw it as a ‘potentially therapeutic experience’. 

 

So, he was technically enrolled, or  _ going _ to be enrolled. Ozpin would let him know more about the courses he’d take, and the kind of training he’d apparently have to go through.

 

Ozpin’s words still echoed in his mind.

 

_ “Perhaps your dream or being a hero, isn’t as far as away as you might think it is.” He smiled. _

 

_ “No...no sir. I think that dream died out a long time ago…” He frowned. _

 

_ Yet despite his response Ozpin kept that smile on his face, like he knew something he didn’t. _

 

Izuku looked up at the sound of a knock on his door, making the conversation fade to the back of his head. He stood up, and placed the journal down. He was about to ask who it was the door slowly opened and someone peered in.

 

It was one of the people from yesterday. The blond guy. His name was...Jaune?

 

“Oh, you’re awake.” He smiled. “Uh, sorry for just kinda opening the door, I thought you were asleep.” He added, only prompting an awkward silence.

 

Izuku stared at the intruder with a bit of instinctive fear, unsure what he could do. It’s not like he could run anywhere.

 

“Uh, is it okay if I come in?” He asked, slipping behind the door.

 

Izuku’s mouth was dry as he answered. “U-Uh...I guess?” He said. “I mean you already sorta...did.” He muttered.

 

There was an idle moment before the door actually opened, showing two familiar faces. The blond guy carried a bag, a few books sticking out, and the red haired woman had a small bag herself. But it looked like it held other things. 

 

“Hello there.” She greeted as they stepped inside, closing the door behind them. She walked over to the desk and placed the bag down. “I’m sorry for startling you yesterday, we both are. We wanted to make sure you’re okay.”

 

The blond guy placed the bag down and started pulling out a few things. “Yeah that kinda backfired, sorry.” He smiled, pulling out a few books. “We never really got to introduce ourselves.” 

 

He came over slowly, thankfully not startling the confused boy and held out a hand.

 

Jaune held out his hand a bit too quickly, making Izuku flinch. There was a moment before Izuku hesitantly shook his hand.

 

“My name is Jaune, Jaune Arc. And her name is Pyrrha Nikos.” He looked over to her.

 

“Hello.” She waved.

 

They were friendly, and nice. Warm. He could sense that they carried no ill intent, much like the kind he’s become so acclimated to, whenever he was around...anywhere really.

 

“What’s your name?” Jaune asked.

 

“Oh, uh…” They put their first names first here right? Yeah he was pretty sure of that. “Izuku Midoriya.” He answered. 

 

“Nice to meet you Izuku.” Pyrrha said. “May I?” She gestured to the chair at the desk, and he nodded.

 

“So, how are you doing? The last time we saw you, you just kind of ran off, and Professor Goodwitch just took you away.” Jaune asked.

 

“I-I’m good.” Izuku shrugged, sitting on the bed and scooting back a bit. “Just...had a talk with Ozpin. Stuff about enrolling.” 

 

“You’re going to be enrolling?” Pyrrha asked. 

 

“Yeah, just to kinda. Keep an eye on me…” How much could he really tell?

 

“So it  _ was _ your Semblance that went haywire.” Jaune said. “You sure you’re okay? Whenever that happens to someone, it takes a lot out of them.” He quickly shifted to concern.

 

“Y-Yeah...Yeah I’m good.” Izuku answered. “Don’t worry.”

 

The two look at each other before looking back at him. 

 

“Do you have a weapon?” Pyrrha asked.

 

“A weapon?” Izuku asked.

 

She nodded. “A weapon, we bring our own weapons that we’ve trained with and most of us have customized ourselves. I take it...you don’t have one?” She asked.

 

Izuku blanked out for a minute. He needed a weapon? And one that students here customized themselves? How the hell was he going to pull that?  _ Where _ the hell was he going to get that?

 

“I guess that’s a no.” Jaune said. “Hey, I’m sure that they’ll be able to make you a weapon. They do a lot of repairs here, and I’m sure there are times where they have had to make a few new weapons.”

 

“Oh boy…” Izuku rubbed his eyes. What would he even use? What  _ could _ he even use? He was a little twig compared to Jaune and Pyrrha. He could only imagine what they use. 

 

“I’m sure it’ll be fine.” Jaune tried to offer some words of encouragement. “Maybe you can see the kind of weapons other students use and go from there.”

 

Izuku grunted lightly and sighed. “Don’t you usually go to school at a school?” He asked after a minute, looking up. 

 

“Well, actually class hasn’t started yet. So we came to see you before it started.” Pyrrha smiled. 

 

The three looked up as a bell rang overhead. 

 

“Well, looks like class is starting.” Izuku muttered, looking at the two. 

 

Jaune groaned. “Well, looks like we gotta go.” He looked to the greenette. “Maybe we can stop by later?”

 

Izuku shrugged. “I guess.”

 

They started heading towards the door, before Pyrrha turned to him again. “Almost forgot. We bought a few things in those bags. Just to make the room a bit more comfortable. I’m sure the blandness of the room can be a bit much at times.”

 

“Uh...thanks.” He said, watching June open the door, only for a nurse to be on the other side.

 

“Shouldn’t you two be in class?” She asked, a stern look crossing her features.

 

“Y-Yes ma’am!”

 

“We were just heading over there.”

 

She watched them exit the room, and stepped inside afterwards.

 

“How are you feeling?” She asked, a roll of bandages in her hands.

 

“...Okay…”

 

\---

 

Turns out the two had actually left quite a bit in the bags. Jaune mostly left behind a few comics and what looked like a history book. Though he assumed that it was by accident as time went on. 

 

Pyrrha had left a few things. She left a small blanket that was by far warmer than the one he had. A water bottle with cold water, and a few snacks. 

 

After the nurse changed his bandages he may or may not had taken the liberty to step out of his room with a few of the comics. The room had just become suffocating after some time, alone with a few books and absolute silence? 

 

Yeah, that brought back memories he wasn’t too fond of.

 

Unsurprisingly he ended up getting lost, and ended up somewhere outside. Needless to say, he ended up finding himself in a more isolated, quiet area. At the first sight of students he made himself dive into a few bushes and waited for them to pass.

 

He heard some of them chattering away at a few things. One of the more prominent subjects was about ‘that one crazy kid who attacked everyone’.

 

Great, he already made quite the reputation for himself.

 

He ended up sitting a few ways away near foliage, a place that most didn’t walk by very often. Once or twice he tried to walk around, only to end up in some different place every time. So far he found a dining hall, what looked like a docking station, and in a large hall of sorts. 

 

He ended up finding his way back to his quiet spot where he would have blended in perfectly if he wasn’t wearing white clothes. Every once in awhile he would look up to see students walking around. 

 

He had seen a few of the same people once or twice, rushing to get from class to class. Some he noticed always took it at a leisurely stroll despite the bell ringing before they were even in the classroom. 

 

He had noticed a group of four girls pass by a couple of times, he couldn’t help but feel that they were familiar. One of their more noticeable characteristics was just the colors they seemed defined by. Red, white, black, and yellow.

 

They seemed to either be in a calm state, or a yelling match of sorts. It was hard to tell whether they were genuinely mad or if they were just kidding. Either way, they were really loud, they certainly sounded familiar. And once or twice they got a bit too close and nearly sent him sprinting far away. Not that he’d get very far.

 

“Kind of reminds me of Gang Orca.” He muttered, flipping through the comic. He was almost done with it, which kind of sucked. He finished the other two over the course of the day. He was glad they were pretty long, having lasted him a long time.

 

In all honesty, he would have ended up finishing the comic if he hadn’t felt uneasy after some time. It started out as a small nagging feeling, something he could ignore after some time. It felt eerily familiar, sending chills racing up and down his spine. 

 

He pushed the feeling down again and again, or at least he thought so. Unconsciously he had begun to clench his fists tightly, cold sweat raced down his face as he felt sick. He knew that feeling, and he tried to push it back.

 

It was happening again, and like every other time he had no control. He swallowed hard, making himself stay calm as he slowly put the reading material down.

 

Away, he had to get away. To a safe place.

 

He stood up and started to gather his things in a hurry. That’s when he felt a few eyes on him, he didn’t care. He tried not to care. 

 

He was about to look for one of the books when he suddenly found it being held out towards him. A dark, humanoid silhouette stood before him. Taller than him, but not quite towering over him. It had a more bulky, muscled build than he did. Intimidating.

 

White spheres that shown through the inky shadows that made up its body looked down at him. A white line appeared a bit below where the nose would be, stretching into a grin as he snatched the book away. This was one he hadn’t seen before, it was...strange. 

 

He flinched away as the shadow held out its hand out to him, as if asking him to take it. 

 

When he was about to turn away to make his way back to his room he felt the shadow grab the back of his shirt.

  
  
  


Ḑ̷̢̡̡̬̦̩̤̰͚͎̱͍̠͍̥͙̄̎̓͐̀ơ̵̧̩̟̳̤͕͇̝̠̣̗̔̋͗̏̇͆̈͋̇͝͝n̸̡̢̥͚̰̞͕̥̠̳̣̜͇̦̬̻̤̜̾̒̽̋͌͌̉͑̒͛̒͜͝͝͝ͅ'̷̛̭̤̲̘̠͚̗̹̩̳͉̱̳̩̖̼̿̀͗̊̈͋̇͊̎̎́̋̔̿͂͊̅͜͠ͅt̸̠͉͔̫͇͑̔̓.̴̤͉̙̭̺͔̻͍̝̮̰͂̈͛͑̎̃̓̉̀̾̿͐͠.̴̨̛̬̭̝̙̖̗̻̰͎̊̔̈͐̄.̵̼͙̯͉͔̳̲̠̰̺̍ͅḻ̵̢̻͚̰̝̉̍̓̊̒̅̿͘͜͝ě̴̖̥͇͖͚̼̦̤͔̀͊̒͋̑͐̋̾͒̎͌̑̍̽̈͘͜͝͝ͅả̴̻̼̭̞̺̘̌̏͋̋͋̌̔̑͒͛͂̇̑̐́̽͝͝͠v̷̧̢̢͓͔͓͎̩͉͔̪̳̱̘̩͉̪̘̺̠̮̻͖̌͑̇̾͑̌̏͐̎ẽ̵̥͙̜̞͇̰̞̦̬̈́̂̓̃ͅ ̷̨̡̛̯͎̦̜͙̮̪̮͎̮̟͍̤͖̯̘̜͐̓͐̎̾͛̆̈́̐̌͘̚ͅm̵̢̢̹̩͍͖͓̖̩̙̠̫̞̗͎̿̀͘ḙ̴̝̖̦͖̏̿̇̓̽͜͝͝

  
  
  


It’s scratchy voice made him want to run away, sending pained ringing into his skull. He tore himself away from the thing’s grip, earning himself a set of scratches by that creature’s claws. He tore down the way he had come, using whatever landmarks he could to guide him back. He could see a few other monsters, peering at him from afar. 

 

And right behind him was that new monster, racing after him and repeatedly calling out for him. Sounding more and more annoyed with each shout. Like a parent scolding their child.

  
  
  


D̸̫̥̩̫̝͈͈̪́̉̈́̔́̎͋͑͋̄̆͌̿ȯ̶̧̨̨̹̺̬̰̣̜̞̍̂͐̕n̴̨̰͎̙͛̀̀͒͛̽̓̈́͗̆͜͝ͅ'̶̛͔̥̝͇̗̪̘̽t̴̨̢̡̛͍̳͇̗̠̱̹͚̥̰̺̬̏͆̒̄̓̄̐̂̓͐͝͝ ̷̳͖̯͚̟̦͎̫̣̒̓̎̈́̌̃͌̋̄͊͒̕͜ͅr̴̞̰̞͍͉͕̤̠̾ù̴̡̮̝́̔̑n̵̗̜̯͇̭͇͐̎̀̉̽̾̚͘ͅ ̸̝̣̯̺͖̣̤̥̪͍̽̀̂̆̇͂͘͝ā̸̢̼̲̈́̏̋̓͌̑̊̕͠w̴̢̧̢̨̲̱̪͇̠͓͚͎͋̈̈́̉̍́ȃ̷̙̺̭̜̣̟̻̺̽̈́̌̆̒̌̍̂̐̏͑̂͘y̵̨̢͓͚̪̼͙̎̍͛̄͋͑̉͝ ̴̡̡̛̮͔͈̮̱̭̠̳̗̫̰̂̓̆͂̿̐̋͑̓̕͜͝f̴̡̘͚͖̜̞̣̫͖̞̙̳̖͔͂͂̒̈́͆͒̈̐̚͘͝ͅr̷̨̥̞̱̩͚̰̬̞̐̒͑̑̀͛͑͜o̵̢̰͖̣̜̓̓̔̀͜͝͝ͅm̷͉̥͑̌̿͊̑̃͐͂͊̋͊ ̶̧̧̛̬͗̏̈͋̋͋̈͐͆̈́͘͘m̷̢̨̨̜̠̺͙̓͛̍̔͛̇̌̋̈́̒̉̕ͅe̵͖̣̒̅̄!

  
  


He felt himself bump into something, or maybe someone, but he didn’t care. Not at the moment, just like everyone else, just like back then he’d be the only one who could see those things. 

 

He heard a few more yells, but they sounded different from that thing following him. They sounded real, normal. But also angry, a few confused. 

 

_ Get away… _

 

He raced down the hall and turned a corner, not looking over his shoulder.

 

_ I just have to get away… _

 

He saw a few faint figures that disappeared as soon as they came, a few stood behind some of the students. Others seemed to emerge from the walls, others just floated about. 

 

He grunted as he made himself run faster having a faint idea of where he was going now. He rounded another corner and looked over his shoulder. It was far away now, offering some kind of relief.

 

He shook his head and looked forward, only to smack into a door and slam onto the ground. His vision was nothing but bright stars and swirling colors for a bit before he was able to blink it all away. He heard voices, someone saying something.

 

It was hard to make out with the ringing, but it got easier to hear as it slowly began to die down. 

 

“What was that all about?”

 

“You think something spooked him?”

 

“Seriously? What could scare someone like him?”

 

He saw someone standing over him, squinting his eyes. Her form cleared up a bit as she looked over him. Red hair, and silver eyes.

 

“Hey, you okay?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> He let himself slink back into the shadows as he watched the boy run in terror. No one else had to know he had here, not now.
> 
> He regarded the boy as one of the lucky ones, he still maintained a physical form...
> 
> Why did he look so familiar, like someone he once knew


	5. Second Chance?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maybe all this is really a second chance, maybe he should take it.

“And we are Team RWBY!” The girl announced, her arms up.

 

Izuku nodded slowly as he absentmindedly ate some food, it was the first actual meal he’s eaten in a while. 

  
After he had fallen to the ground, and saw the girl asking if he was okay, he had reluctantly taken her hand and had gotten to his feet. 

 

Small, awkward dialogue and one suggestion later he was sitting in the dining room after they all had introduced themselves. Ruby, who he guessed was around his age was the leader. Weiss was an heiress. Blake was a quiet, mysterious person who seemed to withhold her judgements and words until she deemed it appropriate. And Yang was Ruby’s sister, rowdy, louder, and a bit more playful.

 

He had yet to really say much about himself, which was nice. He didn’t have to speak, to say anything. He didn’t really want to.

 

“I know I’ve been talking a lot, but what about you? We never got your name.” Ruby looked at him.

 

There it was.

 

“Er…” He looked away and started to push his food around the plate. 

 

“Oh hey guys!” Izuku looked up at the sound of the familiar voice.

 

“Jaune!” Ruby called, waving him over.

 

A group of four walked over to their table, trays in hand. They sat down, two of them were a bit too close for Izuku’s liking, despite them being familiar faces. 

 

“Hello Izuku, how are you?” Pyrrha looked over to him with a smile.

 

He shrugged.

 

What could he really say?

 

‘Yeah I had another episode, a monster chased me; but you don’t need to know that’. After everything had calmed down he had begun to feel the usual effects of an episode.

 

He would slowly start to shut down until he ended up just collapsing and sleeping away his exhaustion. It was usually slow, but every once in a while it just hit him out of left field. 

 

“Right?” 

 

His head snapped up as he realized he was being talked to.

 

“What?” He asked. Not realizing what they were talking about.

 

They were quiet for a moment before Jaune spoke up. “You didn’t really mean for any of that to happen? You know, the whole…”

 

“O-Oh! No, no no.” He shook his head. “That was...I just don’t…” He sighed.

 

“His semblance was out of control.” Pyrrha supplied. “Which I’m sure has happened to us all at one point.” She looked around at the table. Nora nodded gleefully while Ren sighed.

 

“That may be true, but never on that kind of scale.” Weiss crossed her arms.

 

His lips drew into a thin line as he looked down.

 

“Weiss, be nice.” Ruby looked at her. 

 

Izuku looked back to what he had seen, all those monsters, the one that chased him. It still scared him to death, who knows where that thing lurked, what if it was watching him now?

 

“No, she’s right.” Izuku muttered. “I made a mess, and I probably got a lot of people hurt, or put them in danger.” He began to wring his hands. “I’m hoping that it doesn’t happen again, but...either way. I’m sorry.” He rubbed the back of his head. 

 

“Well hey, at least it wasn’t on purpose.” The orange haired girl said with a smile.

 

Izuku shrugged before taking one more bite of his food and getting up. “I’m going to head back, it’s been a long day.” He said softly, before hurrying off.

 

After he had left the dining hall everyone looked at Weiss who actually looked a but guilty. 

 

“Way to go Ice Queen.” One of them sighed.

 

\----

 

_ Pray you’ll get a Quirk in the next life, and take a swan dive off the roof! _

 

He had fallen into one of his slumps again, it was all downhill from there. 

 

He didn’t head back to his room, instead he opted to just wander around aimlessly until he shut down. It was better to be doing something instead of waiting around. 

 

“What are you doing?” He muttered to himself, gripping his arms tightly. “What are you thinking?” He asked himself. He made sure to stay away from other groups.

 

He passed the door he would usually take to go back to his room. Going straight ahead and getting lost off over again.

 

“You shouldn’t be making friends here... “ He scolded himself. “You hurt these people, a-and you’re...you can’t even…” He growled and shook his head. He couldn’t put it into words but he knew how he felt, and instead of recognizing it as an unhealthy thought process he just saw it as truth.

 

He shouldn’t make friends with these people, he didn’t deserve it. He wasn’t even from that world. Why on earth would they want to be friends with him?

 

Unless it was pity, which was actually a believable concept. 

 

But soon enough they’d stop being nice to him, they’d get sick of him and cast him out. That’s how it always worked, one way or another. History will always repeat itself.

 

By the time he had started tugging at his hair he was out in the open, the sun starting to set. Casting yellow and orange rays on his face. He suddenly stopped when he saw something far up ahead. It almost looked like a take off point for airships. 

 

He felt a frown on his face as he walked forward, standing in the middle with the unattended ships. Still lightly tugging at his hair he walked over to the edge and sat down.

 

“Doesn’t this feel familiar?” He muttered to himself as he stared downwards, seeing nothing but greenery below.

 

The rays of the sun had warmed his face, offering some kind of comfort. 

 

He let out a long sigh as he laid back and looked up at the sky. 

 

“Why are you here?” He asked himself. “What are you doing?”

 

“I believe I could ask the same thing.” A calm voice murmured.

 

Izuku gasped and sat up, looking up in a bit of shock to see Ozpin walking over to him, a patient smile on his face. 

 

“P-Professor Ozpin.” He said, watching the man sit beside him. 

 

“Yes, it’s me.” He hummed, placing his cane beside him. He looked out at the scenery before him, taking in the warmth of the Sun and the occasional light breeze. The calm forest beneath them and the city light that began to turn on, easy to see from where they sat.

 

“So, young man, what exactly are you doing here?” He asked after a bit.

 

“...Thinking.” Izuku answered after a moment, laying back down to look at the sky.

 

“About what exactly? Why aren’t you in the dining hall with your friends?”

 

“Friends?” Izuku asked, raising an eyebrow. 

 

“Yes, friends. I assume you’ve at least gotten that far with Miss Nikos and Mister Arc. And Miss Rose is always quick to befriend anyone she meets.” He explained. “I’m sure you have made a few friends.”

 

Izuku couldn’t help but roll his eyes, his somber attitude changing to one of a bit of irritation. It just felt like he was being mocked.

 

“Sure, like they’d wanna be friends with me.” He huffed. “The trouble maker who caused chaos the very moment he appeared. The one who could have hurt someone and probably did. That weird outcast kid who mutters to himself a lot. Sure, I’m real good friend material.”

 

Ozpin watched him for a bit before shaking his head. “Do you particularly distrust them?” He asked. He sipped at something which Izuku hadn’t seen before. Did he seriously bring a thermos with him?

 

“...” Izuku stayed silent. Did he distrust them? Maybe a little, mostly around the others. Jaune and Pyrrha he felt a bit more comfortable around. But there was always that underlying feeling, like a trigger that could be pulled at any time. Soon enough he’d be rejected and left all alone again.

 

Was it worth the risk?

 

Ozpin had taken his pondering silence as a confirmation of sorts. He took a deep breath before he began to speak.

 

“Young man, I may not be aware of your previous history. Of how your life was before, but I can assure you that it will not be the same here.” He hummed. “What may have happened may carry over in a way; but overall perhaps this could be considered a second chance.” 

 

“A second chance?” He asked, looking up.

 

Ozpin nodded. 

 

“A second chance to get rejected by the people around me?” He asked. 

 

“I’d personally advise against that attitude. You don’t know that they’ll deny you their companionship.” He raised an eyebrow.

 

“Mmph…” He grunted.

 

They settled into a somewhat comfortable quiet, until there was the sound of footsteps running in their direction.

 

“Hey! Izuku!” Jaune.

 

Ozpin shot a ‘I told you so’ look at the boy. 

 

Izuku groaned as he sat up, a bit light headed. He was rather enjoying the ground in his exhaustion. He turned to see Jaune running over, stopping before them and panting a bit.

 

“T-There you are!” He said between his pants. “Y-You weren’t your room and...oh jeez...we were worried.” He wheezed. 

 

“Oh. Uh…” He looked to the side, not sure how to respond. “Sorry?”

 

Jaune shook his head. “Just glad to see you.” He stood up straight. “You get lost again?” He asked, holding out a hand.

 

“Er...I guess you could say that.” He mumbled. He waited for a moment before hesitantly taking the outstretched hand and getting to his feet.

 

“Don’t worry, you’ll get used to this place.” He grinned. After a moment he saw the second figure stand up and was made aware of who was in his presence. “Oh! Hello Professor Ozpin!” He greeted.

 

“Hello there Mister Arc, and how are you on this fine day?” He asked.

 

“Oh, you know. Just another day, busy as ever.” He looked back to the shortest of the three and nodded. “Come on, let’s head back.”

 

Izuku nodded a bit and started walking away, Jaune right beside him.

 

“Oh, and young Midoriya?” Ozpin called after them.

 

Izuku looked over his shoulder. “I believe you may be in suitable enough condition to attend classes by now. I’ll have a uniform sent to your room, and a schedule. I particularly want you to pay attention in combat.”

 

_ You want me to attend classes? Now? Aren’t I still injured to an extent? _

 

“Uh, alright.” He answered, turning around and continuing his walk.

 

“I’m gonna die if I have to fight.” Izuku muttered after a second or two, scratching at his facial scar.

 

“Don’t be like that, I’m sure they’ll just have you watch.” Jaune tried. 

 

Izuku gave him a look. It was a possibility. He did lack a weapon at the moment. 

 

As they walked Jaune told him about the classes they may have together, history, combat, and various others. He sheepishly admitted to falling asleep in a few of them.

 

Through the talking Izuku hadn’t quite realized the smile that quirked up his lips until he was back in his room, it was so subtle and such an unconscious thing. It had been a while since he had actually smiled. It was far from the beaming face he used to have, but if anything it was a slightly start.

 

Maybe this  _ was _ a second chance.


	6. A Step Forward

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first day, fun right?

Jaune and Pyrrha stood outside Izuku’s room, starting to get anxious. Izuku knew today was the day to start classes right? Yeah, he was there when Ozpin had said it.

 

“Do you think he’s awake?” Pyrrha asked.

 

“I...actually don’t know.” Jaune said, looking at the door. “Should we knock?”

 

She nodded and gestured for him to do it.

 

He sighed and lifted a fist up, knocking on the door.

 

“Izuku?” Jaune asked, raising his voice a bit. “You almost ready?” He asked.

 

He didn’t get any answer, just silence. The two looked at each other before Jaune knocked again, trying to get his attention.

 

“Should we go in just to make sure he’s okay?” Jaune asked, concerned. “I mean, yesterday he seemed a bit upset but…”

 

Pyrrha looked at him, then at the door. “Perhaps we should, better to be safe than sorry. I’m sure Professor Port would understand if we were late.”

 

“Uh, you sure about that?” Jaune raised an eyebrow. He had gotten one or two scoldings for falling asleep, he was pretty sure being late would unleash a whole new slew of punishments upon him.

 

They looked at each other for a moment before Jaune sighed and slowly opened the door, peeking inside to find a dark room. There was soft breathing in the room, but other than that there were no signs of life.

 

Jaune stepped inside and turned on the light, hearing a low groan. He looked over to the bed to see the small body of Izuku tangled in the sheets, his arms wrapped around himself starting to unfold and try to free himself.

 

“Izuku, you’re not even awake yet?” Jaune asked, a bit of shock in his voice.

 

He let out some kind of incomprehensible noise as he looked up, looking around the room in confusion. As if he forgot where he was.

 

“Wash hap…” He groggily asked, looking around. “When day…”

 

Jaune watched him out of concern, watching him swing his legs over the bed and nearly fall over. He looked exhausted, dark bags beneath his eyes. Did he get _any_ rest last night?

 

“Izuku, you okay?” Jaune asked, walking over and helping him up. He didn’t feel feverish, just seemed confused.

 

“Shu...down las night.” He muttered,rubbing his eyes and shaking his head. Starting to come out of his confused stupor. “ No ‘nough slep.” He slurred.

 

“You think you can finish waking up on the way to class? We’re gonna be late. Remember, yesterday Professor Ozpin said you could come to class, your uniform is right there.”

 

Izuku glanced over. “Oh...yeh. Okay, change real quick.” He said, giving a light push to Jaune towards the door. As soon as he stepped out the door slammed shut.

 

“Well?” Pyrrha asked.

 

“He hadn’t even woken up. He seems kind of confused though, I don’t think he slept well last night.”

 

“Oh dear…” Pyrrha looked at the door. “Well, perhaps yesterday didn’t sit well with him.”

 

“He seemed fine when I brought him back to his room.” Jaune rubbed the back of his head, lightly jumping and turning around when the door opened. “Maybe-”

 

His uniform looked fine, shirt tucked in and the collar down. Although his tie seemed a bit too bunched up, and his hair was a curly mess. Well, more of a mess than it usually was.

 

“Good morning sleepy head.” Pyrrha smiled as he closed the door behind him.

 

“Tired morning.” He groaned, yawning as he wiped away some toothpaste from the corner of his mouth.

 

“Are you ready for class?” They started to guide him to the class at a quick pace.

 

_Am I ready to be singled out and make a fool out of myself?_

 

“I’m not too sure…” He scratched at his facial scar.

 

“I think you may enjoy Professor Port’s class. He teaches Grimm Studies, it can be pretty interesting.”

 

“Just don’t fall asleep in his class.” Jaune said, staring straight ahead as he seemed to be reliving something.

 

“I’ll try.” Izuku yawned again, shaking his head. “Do I really need anything in there?” He looked at them.

 

“We have to take notes, but until you get the proper supplies you can look at my notes.” The redhead smiled.

 

“Thanks…”

 

“Hold on, don’t we have Professor Goodwitch later today?” Jaune asked, looking ahead to see the door of the classroom. They would barely be on time.

 

“I believe so, but we can discuss that later.”

 

“Wait, Goodwitch?” Izuku looked at them. “She’s the blond lady with the riding crop right?” He asked.

 

“Yeah, that’s her.”

 

Izuku groaned and buried his face into his hands. She already didn’t like him, that was apparent. But having to be in the same room with her for an extended amount of time as she taught something important to these people that actually had a future. He would probably just annoy the hell out of her with his mere presence.

 

They didn’t get to question his reaction as the bell rang, sending them rushing to their seat and dragging the youngest of the trio along with them.

 

“Miss Nikos, Arc, nice of you to join us.” The professor spoke up, pacing around the room. “You barely made it here, by the skin of your teeth.”

 

“What took you guys so long?” Weiss, a few seats over, looked over.

 

“Uhh…” Jaune whispered.

 

“That was on me.” Izuku mumbled.

 

“Sleep in?” Ruby asked.

 

“Yup.”

 

“It’s okay, I don’t like waking up early either.” Ruby smiled.

 

“Don’t enable that kind of behavior.” Weiss scolded.

 

“Well-”

 

“So today! We will be going over the anatomy, and techniques that are effective against a common, yet dangerous Grimm. The Nevermore.” Port spoke up, not seeming to appreciate the lack of attention from his students.

 

Izuku looked away from the other and looked at the man. He recognized him, he was one of the people he had bumped into when he had been running around. And it seemed the man recognized him too.

 

“But, before we start I believe we should let our new student introduce himself. You there, the green one.”

 

Izuku grimaced, and hesitantly pointed to himself, knowing it was futile to even try and deflect it.

 

“Yes you, stand up young man. And introduce yourself to the class.” The professor put his hand behind his back and puffed his chest out. As if trying to demonstrate how Izuku should be standing.

 

The boy looked around nervously to see the other students staring at him, questioningly. Some were whispering to each other, others just watched him. He didn’t doubt for a second that they were making the connection on who he was.

 

He drew his lips into a thin line and slowly stood up, fiddling with his hands.

 

“Uh…” He looked around. “M-My name is... Izuku...Izuku Midoriya...yeah.” He bit his lip and sat down hurriedly, keeping his eyes downcast. His face was a bit red, he tried to hide it in his arms.

 

“Interesting name young man.” Port stated. “Well, despite you just arriving I expect you to keep up with everyone. Is that clear?”

 

He nodded, still trying to hide himself. Mumbling softly.

 

“What was that young man?” He called out.

 

“Y-Yes sir.” He said, just a bit louder.

 

He nodded. “Right then, let’s get started.” He turned towards the diagram.

 

“Can I bury myself yet?” He muttered to himself as he watched the man below. His eyes going over and scanning the picture on the board. It looked like a giant bird with a mask.

 

He listened as best he could, taking mental notes over what was said about the creature.

 

Like the other Grimm over time it would get bigger and bigger. They started out as small as a normal bird.

 

The smaller versions preferred to travel in flocks, while large ones usually travelled alone.

 

The larger ones were capable of deadlier blows and were far more aggressive than their smaller counterparts. With one harsh flap of their wings they could let loose a barrage of giant spear like feathers.

 

Their hides were incredibly strong, and were start to pierce through on the back. The underside however was a whole different story.

 

It was subtle at first, and no one around him really noticed it until later. He had stopped trying to hide himself after a while, and sat up to better hear the man.

 

A few others took a bit of amusement as he started muttering softly to himself, repeating what the professor had said but leaving out the details the man told of himself in glorious battle. He had even begun to take invisible notes, writing on his palm with his finger.

 

After a while the man had gone from the lesson onto a story about himself. The students around the classroom groaned to themselves but let it happen. If they let him go in that meant no necessarily difficult assignments.

 

While Port told his story Izuku had gone on his own rant. Muttering raising slightly in volume as he seemed to take his nonexistent notes faster.

 

“Smaller ones can be taken out of a ranged weapon with ease, but larger ones would require a whole team. Maybe two at least. In order to beat one of those you’d have to ground it, but it seems to understand that and would be constantly flying. The only way to ground it is their either tire it out of injure it, and the best way to ground one in the very least would be to take out a wing or seriously mangle one so it’s be forced down…unless…”

 

“Uh, is he okay?” Yang whispered, glancing at the focused boy. He stared straight ahead, as if picturing a scenario in his mind.

 

Jayne glanced over, being closest he could understand most of the muttering.

 

“I think so?” He tried.

 

“Maybe you should try poking him?” Nora supplied, grinning.

 

“No, don’t do that.” Ren objected.

 

“Leave him be, if he’s not going to pay attention to the lesson then let him face those consequences.” Weiss argued.

 

“I think he may just be taking his own notes.” Blake hummed.

 

They looked at him.

 

“You sure?”

 

“Not really.”

 

They left the greenette alone for the rest of the class. Occasionally glancing over to make sure he was ok, but he still seemed focus on whatever he ranting about.

 

Jayne had been half tempted to jot down a few things he was saying, but with how quickly the boy jumped from what he would call subtopic to subtopic it would have been difficult.

 

It was only after the bell had rung that the entire classroom breathed a sigh of relief.

 

“Oh, thought we had more time.” The professor looked at his watch. “Well, that concludes this lesson. Continue to review your notes, we will be having a test coming up soon.”

 

There were a few groans from the students as they walked out, dreading the future quiz.

 

The bell hadn’t snapped Izuku out of his rant, he was so focused.

 

“Hey Izuku, class is done.” Jayne said, standing up and gathering his things.

 

Nora walked over, peering at him. “Hello? Helloooo? Earth to Green bean!” She poked him. “Hey!”

 

“Wah!” He fell over in surprise, groaning as he sat up. “Ow…”

 

“Welcome back to the real world.” Pyrrha greeted as she helped him up. “You we’re stuck in your own head for a while.”

 

Izuku blushed and gasped, slapping his hands over his mouth. “I’m sorry.” He mumbled, knowing he was probably running his mouth the entire time.

 

The others shared a small laugh before they headed out, guiding him around.

 

The rest of the day had gone smoothly for the most part. Izuku didn’t make himself stand out amongst the others, electing to just sit and listen to them talk. Occasionally letting out an amused huff of air.

 

He restrained himself from going on his muttering rants in other classes, biting his tongue and silently taking notes on his palm. Pro- no _Dr._ Oobleck was an eccentric kind of person. And he had no doubt that if he disturbed the class in any way, he’d get the sharp end of whatever weapon the man was hiding.

 

At least the man had been merciful enough to not force him to introduce himself. Thank god.

 

By the time the last class for the day rolled around he was ready to just drop dead in his bed. He’d like nothing more than to just ride out the rest of his exhaustion in blissful sleep.

 

The last class of the day had become one he had been both looking forward to and absolutely dreading. Combat class.

 

One on hand he’d get to see teams facing off against each other in preparation for the Vytal Festival, which he learned was a thing. On the other hand he’d have to be in the same room with the lady who probably wants nothing to do with him. Which, in all honesty, he didn’t blame her.

 

“We’re gonna go get changed, just wait for us in the classroom.” Yang ended up telling him as she walked away. Lightly shoving him in the direction of the doors while a group of others walked away.

 

He watched them walk away before letting out a long sigh and opening the door. He peered inside to look around. It was a large room, able to hold a lot of people. At the far end there was what seemed to be a stage with a large screen hanging above it. If he had to guess that was where most of the fighting would be taking place.

 

Much to his relief he didn’t see Goodwitch, which prompted him to creep inside quietly. He closed the door behind him and walked forward, starting to take in the room. He actually almost started to feel giddy, he wanted to see the upcoming fights. What kind of weapons and abilities they could use and how.

 

Then he remembered, that he was also there to strictly observe. Watching these fights were supposed to help him make a choice on a weapon he’d have to use himself.

 

“You seem a bit excited.” A voice cut through his thoughts and startled him. He yelped and jumped back, backing away from where he heard the voice. He turned around to see Professor Goodwitch walking into the room, a tablet in hand.

 

“U-Uh, y-yes ma’am?” He stuttered, backing up out of her way.

 

She made a noise of acknowledgement as she pressed a few buttons on the screen.

 

“You are going to be observing?”

 

“Yes ma’am.”

 

She nodded and tapped away at her tablet for a little while more. Izuku had shuffled to the otherside of the room, next to the stage. The two stood in the room in painful silence before the door opened and people began to file in again.

 

When he saw two familiar teams he ended up letting out a breath he hadn’t even realized he had been holding.

 

They had been talking to each other before Nora spotted him and ran over to drag him back to their little circle.

 

“Who do you think is going to fight this time?” Ruby asked, excited.

 

“I believe we may be next. We haven’t gone yet in preparation for the festival.” Weiss said.

 

“There are only four teams left, so there’s only gonna be 2 matches.” Ren nodded.

 

“We ended up going yesterday.” Jaune looked at Izuku before turning back to the conversation.

 

“Ah.” He muttered, staring off to the side. He didn't have much to add to the conversation. He didn’t have much to say, so why say anything? He was just kind of there.

 

“Attention!” Goodwitch called, getting everyone to look at her.

 

“As you know the Vytal Festival is coming up, we’re preparing you for the fighting matches as you will be representing our school. The last battles are taking place today, so we can hit the ground running tomorrow. For our first match…”

 

She listed off two teams, Ruby sighed in disappointment. Looks like they were going to be going last. But Team CRDL hasn’t gone either, so they’d be facing off against them. She couldn’t help but feel some kind of satisfaction with that.

 

“Teams, take your places.”

 

There was a beep to signify the teams start, which was not long after they had settled. Their pictures appeared on the screen, a full green bar next to the profiles.

 

“What’s that?” Izuku asked, looking at the bars.

 

“That’s to measure how much Aura we have left.” Pyrrha answered. “Once it drops into the red you are dangerously low, but in these terms it means you’ve lost the match.”

 

“So anyone in the red just steps out?”

 

“Preferably, yes.”

 

“Huh…”

 

It hadn’t even occurred to him that Aura could be measured.

 

“Hey, I never asked, but what are your guys’ Qu-er Semblances?” He look at the eight of them. Particularly Team RWBY, since he’d be watching them fight.

 

“Oh yeah, we never told you.” Ruby hummed, taking her eyes off the fight. She saw how interested he looked, as if he was at the ready for notes.

 

“Ruby’s is speed.” Yang answered. “Weiss can use her glyphs, which you’ll probably see in this next fight. Blake can make shadows of herself, and me?” She grinned. “Heh, you’ll see.”

 

“Why not just tell me so I don’t have to guess?” Izuku deadpanned, his finger jotting away his invisible notes.

 

“She absorbs damage, then dishes it out twice as hard!” Ruby cheered.

 

“Oh, but that takes away the fun of it.” Yang huffed, shaking her head.

 

“Not for me it doesn’t.” Izuku mumbled, getting a quick laugh from Nora as the blond quickly turned on Izuku.

 

The blond was about to say something to the startled greenette when a buzzer went off, sending the two teams shuffling off the stage.

 

“Aw...that was quick.” Someone sighed, the two teams had put each other in a stalemate. All eight in the red.

 

A few students muttered with each other. Some of them patted the defeated teams on the shoulders, others laughed in mild amusement.

 

“You know, we actually don’t know your Semblance.” Ruby turned to him.

 

None of them missed the way he seemed to immediately became flustered.

 

“O-Oh...uh, well-”

 

“Next up, teams RWBY, and CRDL.” Professor Goodwitch announced.

 

Izuku gave a shaky sigh as the four gathered their weapons and went towards the stage.

 

Jaune leaned down to the shorter boy as they watched the teams get onto the stage. Some of them were saying thing to each other. The male team of CRDL seem to have these cocky grins, while the girls were smiling as well but seemed wary.

 

“So, what is your Semblance anyway?”

 

“Can we talk about that later?” Izuku muttered, staring at the stage. He sighed as he looked over the weapons. The girls had quite the arsenal, diverse and each quite different from each other. While the boys had a more medieval arsenal.

 

He was already starting to draw out a plan how this was going to go. He didn’t know much about the other team, so there’s a few things he might not be taking into account. Whatever, he’d figure it out one way or another.

 

The beep went off and immediately the two teams raced towards each other. His eyes darted around as he looked from group to group his mind racing.

 

A few sparks had flown when the first set of weapons clashed.

 

Jaune had gently grabbed his shoulders and scooted them off to the side to avoid any bodies that might go flying.

 

Cardin, who he sorta recognized, had first tried to go after Ruby who had let off a warning shot before darting away and ending up getting paired with Yang. Some guy with green hair same spinning out of nowhere and aided him, occasionally jumping back and doing his best to deflect an attack from somewhere else, protecting him.

 

The other two seemed to do the same, one focused on one person while the other protected them.

 

“They’re going to lose.” Izuku stated, the most confident he sounded all day. His eyes continued to dart around the arena and follow everyone at different paces.

 

“What?” Jaune looked at him.

 

A few students looked at the boy in confusion, how was he so sure? What did he have a future vision Semblance?

 

“Team CRDL is at a clear disadvantage when against Team RWBY. For one, their weapons appear to be strictly close range, even if they have a ranged weapon somehow hidden within their weapons they’d be better suited for close range while RWBY is relatively well balanced.” He started.

 

“I bet he’s gonna do it again.” Nora looked at Pyrrha.

 

“That’s beside the point though, not necessarily the main reason.” His voice rose a bit in volume. Catching the attention of the teacher.

 

“I’m not certain of their Semblances, but seeing as they don’t seem to be actively using them either means that it’s something that cannot be seen. Or they can only be used within certain opportunities, and if that’s the case then every battle they’d be in would be a gamble whether or not they could use their Semblance.”

 

His eyes widened as he noticed Cardin started going harder against Yang, a quarter of his own Aura was gone. Some of Yang’s was also gone but she had a bit more than him. Blake darted in and out, taking on the dagger wielding student, and keeping his attention while occasionally getting a shot in on Cardin and giving Yang an opening.

 

On the other end someone was taking on Weiss head on, dealing with Ruby as well whenever she was able to get that fourth teammate away from them.

 

“They’re trying to finish the fight quickly.” He started up again. Watching Weiss summon what he assumed was her glyphs and she darted away to avoid the weapon that slammed into the ground.

 

“What?” Jaune looked down at him.

 

“They’re trying to finish the fight quickly, especially Cardin. There, you see?” He points at that side of the skirmish. “He’s panicking, and he’s getting sloppy. Yeah he’s tanking the hits, but so is she. He’s either aware of her Semblance or he’s getting tired. Not only that, but Blake also helps to chip away at his Aura while also dealing with the dagger guy who tried to help take out Yang. they’re trying to do a 2v1.”

 

“W-”

 

“Two people versus one, end the fight, move onto the next opponent. Cardin had the right idea, going after Yang after losing Ruby. If anything that was for the better. Ruby’s weapon puts more distance between the two and Cardin would have had to have been especially bold on order to get close without taking a hit and get a good one in himself. Not to mention she has speed on her side, enabling her to get to a safer distance whenever needed. But that’s where what he did right ended.”

 

He didn’t even pause to take a breath, continuing on. He had the attention of the people around him now, even Goodwitch started to pay attention. Listening to him while watching the fight.

 

“Yeah, going after Yang was a good idea. She’s the tank, the the main strength element of the team. But with what he’s doing he’s trying to tire her out, he’d have more luck trying to knock her out of the arena. Because if you’re going to take out someone like Yang who absorbs damage and dishes it back out, you have to take her out in one go. Finish her off, then move on, With each hit she gets stronger and if you’re trying to tire her out you’re inevitable going to screw yourself over. It may look like she’s on the defensive, but she’s planning. She’s letting him deal those hits.”

 

There was a yell as Ruby and Weiss knocked the two they were occupied with into each other. There was a loud crack and their Auras dipped low. Bordering on having to step out.

 

“Ruby and Weiss seem to synergise well, despite how they act out of battle.” Izuku hummed. “Weiss is also key to this fight.” He watched her plunge her weapon into the ground and a wall of ice appeared, covering them from a sudden barrage of bullets. Oh, so someone _did_ have a ranged weapon. Still, it required two hands, despite it coming from a one handed weapon.

 

“She provides defense, and support for the team. Offering them opportunities to land hits or get out of the way should they not be able to move fast enough.” He saw a set of glyphs appear as the white haired girl darted around and engaged with the sword wielder, catching the two off guard.

 

The two clashed, the CRDL member immediately going on the offensive until he was forced back and had to guard against her quick attacked. Each one precise and aimed to force an opening.

 

“Blake seems to do the same. Although she is more suited for stealth in a fight, able to pull one over on someone with her shadows. That certainly helps while she’s defending Yang from that second fighter, distracting him before striking at either him or Cardin. Their team tried to make it a 2v1 but they were forced into a 2v2. Doesn’t seem aware of it though as they’re still trying to keep two fighters on one person.”

 

“The fight is going to end soon, even though Cardin still has a good amount of Aura left, he’s going to be taken out first. Yang is putting an end to-” He was cut off as there was a loud scream of anger from her, and there was then the sound of her gauntlet unloading and unleashing a rage fuelled punch that sent the poor boy flying out of the arena.

 

“What did I say, about touching my hair!” She yelled loudly. Her lilac eyes turning into raging red orbs.

 

He was suddenly reminded a certain angry blonde that he’d rather forget. The burn scars that littered his body felt like they had begun to burn once again.

 

He had gotten trapped in his head, no longer announcing what would have been bound to happen. Didn’t mean everyone else wasn’t impressed with his prediction.

 

Team RWBY _did_ win.

 

Granted Blake had nearly been taken out, but overall it was an impressive battle on their part.

 

“Hey.” He was slammed back into the present when someone grabbed his shoulder. He looked up to see Jaune looking down at him. “Did you hear him?” He asked.

 

“Hear who?” Izuku asked.

 

“Me!” Cardin yelled, grunting as he brushed some dust off himself. Pyrrha seemed to put herself in front of the two, almost protectively.

 

“What did he say?”

 

“Was there anyway for their team to have won against Team RWBY?” Jaune repeated the question.

 

Professor Goodwitch watched from where she stood, she had heard his entire observation. And even she was wondering the same thing, was there a way they could have won?

 

“O-Oh...that. Uh…” He looked down, his mind quickly kicking back into gear.

 

“Well, in all reality it’s hard to say. There are a lot of scenarios and others things to take into account. But from what I currently know now? It’s a low chance, no.”

 

“What?”

 

“Well, like I said earlier Cardin did the right thing in changing targets from Ruby to Yang. If he hadn’t he would have been in an uncomfortable position. Always keeping distance. The big mistake the team made was that they tried to put two fighters against one person and then move on. In theory that could work, but you especially made the mistake with trying it with Yang first.”

 

“Yang’s Semblance allows her to take damage and deal it back out. You shouldn’t have tried the 2v1 on her, instead you should have tried to do one of two things. Either shift your focus to Blake, or have had find a way to get Weiss and Yang together. Since Weiss uses what I am going to assume are handfuls up dust to make her ranged attacks, that might mean the aim is off and she’d have a chance of hitting Yang while she’s fighting close range with someone. She would have been forced to go into battle as well, up close and personal. And as Weiss seems to have an advantage of speed, she could most likely be overpowered with strength. Theoretically that other sword guy could have possible staggered her or taken her down, but she had the speed that surprised him. And she had taken advantage of that.”

 

Izuku had started to tap his chin and pace, much to the annoyance of Cardin and his team.

 

“If you and that dagger guy had gone after Blake you might have been able to deal with her. But again that would be a gamble. She can use her copies to make a viable distraction and while you would have been focused on that Yang and Blake could have possibly taken one of you out with their combined efforts.”

 

“Ruby and Weiss work surprisingly well together.”

 

“Hey!”

 

“But Ruby specializes in almost all aspects of combat. She has a ranged weapon that offers her accuracy given she has the space and time to land a precise shot. She can support anyone who might go ahead of her, Weiss is the same way but at the possible cost of accuracy. Either way, it didn’t look like it would have ended well. Seeing as your team is comprised of close range fighters, and only really one person who’s capable of speed. Not to mention that the other three members seem to have this air of hesitation around them once it seems like their one and only plan is going to fall apart. So no, I can’t really see any way you guys could have won.”

 

Everyone was quiet, taking in what he had said.

 

Izuku was still tapping his chin, the gears in his mind still turning.

 

Cardin was about to speak up and make some kind of threat to him as he walked over when Goodwitch had raised her voice.

 

“I must say, I am impressed by your skills of observation. Not many of my students would have been able to spot and break down the components of that fight. I couldn’t have said any of it better myself.” She walked though the crowd, tapping away at her tablet before the icons disappeared.

 

“That is all for today. Class has ended.” People started to walk out and sigh in relief. “I expect you to practice for the festival. Just because we are celebrating, does not mean you all get to slack off.”

 

“Yes ma’am…” Some of them grumbled.

 

“I must agree with our Professor.” Pyrrha said as they started walking out. “That was indeed impressive.” She smiled.

 

“O-Oh.” Izuku started to turn a bit red, he covered his face with his arms. “Thanks...I...uh…”

 

“How’d you get so good at that? Is that your Semblance? Analyzing?” Ruby zoomed to catch up.

 

“N-No...I just...I’ve always well...a-admired heroes so…”

 

“Heroes?”

 

“Er, Huntsman! W-We call them Heroes where we’re from!” He quickly corrected himself. “I just...heh…” He put his head down as best he could. His mutterings muffled from his excitement.

 

The others watched him seem to try and curl in on himself.

 

“So are you basically a fanboy?” Pyrrha asked after a while. Making his mumbles stop in their tracks.

 

“I-I mean...I guess?” He mumbled, after a minute or so he looked up. “H-Hold on. Where are going anyway?” He looked around. They were outside, in a large open area. It almost looked like a training area.

 

Which it probably was.

 

Damn it.

 

“Nowhere really. Just an open space. Might be better to discuss things in a more open area rather than a closed space. I figured it might make you feel better.” She hummed.

 

“Oh.” He looked down. He suddenly felt self conscious, what did they want to talk about? Why weren’t they going to just somewhere else. Could he probably just dart away? No. Did he want to try?

 

Yes please.

 

“It looks like a training area, actually. How about you guys train? I’m kinda beat, so I’m gonna head back to my room.” He turned around to walk away, ready to dart off when he realized that it was just him and Pyrrha. There was no one else with them. Even Ruby had somehow darted off somewhere.

 

“You thought the others had followed along with us.” She noted.

 

“Uh...yeah…” He looked around, lips drawn into a thin line.

 

“Come on, have a sit.” She invited him over to a bench that looked over the area. Near a couple of trees.

 

He rubbed his arm as he hesitantly sat down, keeping a bit of distance between them. Why did he feel nervous?

 

Pyrrha seemed to take notice of his discomfort, and scooted the the side to give him a bit more space.

 

“How would you say your first day went?” She asked after a while.

 

He shrugged. “Okay I guess. As well as it could have gone. Being late and kind of making  a fool of myself in the last class.”

 

“A fool?” She asked. “I’d say that was the last thing you did. You may not have performed in combat, but you clearly made your mark as a strategist. You broke down that fight as it happened, your mind works quickly. It truly was impressive.”

 

He bit his lip and rubbed his arm. “I guess? I mean, I kinda just went on a tangent.”

 

“You should have more confidence in yourself. You have a skill, and you’ve honed it into something amazing. You can come up with plans on the spot, and you’re able to point out any opportunities one might be able to take advantage of.”

 

Izuku shrugged and let out a sigh. “I-Is that what you wanted to talk about?” He asked. “My analysis?”

 

“Not exactly, I actually wanted to talk to you about your weapon choice. As well as your Semblance.”

 

_Oh boy…_

 

“Uh, I haven’t really decided on a weapon. Well I mean I have an idea...but it’s not really concrete. I’m not sure if I should even go with that idea.” He said, looking down.

 

“And what would that idea be?” She asked.

 

He made a noise, and looked off the the side. Unconsciously bringing his knees up to his chest.

 

“I mean it feels kind of dumb. Just because I know where it’s coming from, who it’s based off of.” He muttered, staring straight ahead.

 

_‘He’s the coolest hero in the universe!’_

 

“There’s no shame in basing a weapon off of someone. Especially if it’s someone you admire.” She smiled. “From what she’s told me, Ruby has taken inspiration from her uncle.”

 

“Yeah, inspiration. But still, I’m not sure if I can even pull off wielding that. I mean, have you seen me?” He pointed at himself. “I’m pretty scrawny, I think I’d be blown away by the recoil of the thing.”

 

“You’ll train.” She reminded him. “You’re not going to remain in your current state forever. Izuku you haven’t even started, yet you already sound ready to give up.”

 

He frowned at that, and looked down.

 

Hadn’t he already given up? He made his choice when he jumped from that roof, wasn’t that proof enough?

 

No, no he had given up a long time before that. He had given up on his dream of being a hero. He let himself become complacent, no longer fighting against the pummeling and the teasing. Yet somehow finding that will to live when those monsters appeared from those cracks. To run away and fight to live another day.

 

Did he ever give up?

 

“...I gave up on being a hero a long time ago.” Izuku admitted. “It took years, but I realized what everyone was telling me was right. I can’t be a hero, I have no power. I’m not strong. How could someone like me save anyone else, and accomplish other than getting others hurt?”

 

Pyrrha listened to him as he said that, noting the hurt in his voice. A sad kind of defeat, one that had been earned by slowly chipping away at one’s own will.

 

“You said you want to be a hero.” She started, staring hard at him. “But you can’t.”

 

He dipped his head lower if that was possible. Preparing himself for being berated.

 

He had been expecting to hear his stupid he was. How foolish his dream was. How there was no hope for him, he led just get killed. He’d be a nuisance. A danger to the people around him.

 

“And that’s okay.” She said, standing up and walking over to him.

 

He looked up in surprise, meeting her green eyes.

 

“No one is asking you to be a hero. To be a great figure to look up to. I’m far from a hero. You’re here to learn to fight, to be a _Huntsman_. Not a hero. To save people from a common threat, and do what you can to bring peace. You won’t be an indestructible symbol, no one is or will be.”

 

She kneeled down to meet his eyes. “We’re here to make a better place. To keep the light safe from the darkness that seeks to consume it. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to help others, whether you believe yourself to be powerless or not. Besides, nobody is simply powerless. We all have that kernel of power in us, something that manifests and makes each of us special.”

 

She stood up, and backed up a bit.

 

“Stand up.” She said.

 

“H-Huh?” He looked confused.

 

“Stand up Izuku. I see it in you, that little spark that’s still there. You haven’t given up, not just yet.” She held out a hand. “Now stand up.”

 

He looked at her hand warily, before taking it and getting pulled to his feet. Stumbling a bit. He looked up to her once he regained his footing.

 

“W-We’re not going to fight. Are we?” He asked, his stomach dropping.

 

She shook her head, gently tightening her hold on his hand.

 

She could feel it, she hadn’t been sure before but now she was certain.

 

“Then…”

 

“I’m going to help you take your first step. One that everyone else had the chance to take, except you. An unfair circumstance in my opinion, but perhaps no one was there to help you. Now there is.”

 

He narrowed his eyes in confusion. “What are you saying?” He asked.

 

She gave him a smile that somehow made him feel just a bit calmer.

 

“I’m going to unlock your Aura.”

  
  



	7. Unlocking and Building Bridges

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pyrrha gives Izuku a helping hand.
> 
> Izuku realizes maybe it's time to start breaking down those walls he's built over the years

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long y'all. I've been juggling a couple of fics at a time, and I wanted to at least get something out this week.
> 
> Hope you guys have a good day/night.

Izuku gaped at the redhead.

 

“Huh?”

 

Pyrrha smiled patiently. “I’m going to unlock your Aura. I had the slight idea that you couldn’t use yours, from the moment I met you. When I injured you, I thought you would have been able to take the damage. Your Aura would have prevented any severe injury, even with what I suspected you had left.”

 

Izuku brushed a hand on his scar, looking down.

 

“And ever since then, I hadn’t sensed it in you. I couldn’t feel the energy that a person radiates from their Aura, their own shield to bear their burdens. I also suspect that’s why your Semblance had gone out of control.”

 

Izuku quirked an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

 

“When your Semblance had lost control, I believe that it was trying to push against the...let’s call it a barrier, that your Aura is locked behind. But you can’t have your Semblance without Aura, and it-”

 

“It just kind of destabilized me.” Izuku looked to the side.

 

_I can’t really tell you that it’s a Quirk…as much as I’d like to._

 

Pyrrha gave him a look. “Has this...ever happened to you before?” She asked.

 

He didn’t answer at first, keeping his eyes downcast. There was no harm in putting in some of the truth.

 

When those monsters appeared out of nowhere, when they’d chase him down. They’d appear from whatever realm they called their home.

 

“N-Not on the scale that it had happened that day...it was always the small things.” He frowned. “Nobody else was able to...to see what I saw…”

 

Pyrrha looked shocked. Just how long had he been suffering from this? How long had he been unable to remedy this ailment? How long had he been stuck in the darkness of his own Semblance? Something that was meant to help, did nothing but harmed him.

 

“Well, hopefully this will ease your burden.” She smiled, raising a hand to place it on his shoulder.

 

She couldn’t help but feel a pang of hurt when she saw him flinch at the raising of her hand. Did he really think she would hurt him?

 

She slowly placed her hand on his shoulder, raising it a bit to brush her thumb over his cheek. Something her parents had done to soothe her when she was young.

 

She took a deep breath, her Aura slowly seeping through the barrier his was behind. From there she could form words, a key to break down that wall.

 

“It is through dreaming that we shape our reality. In this, we become a sign in the distance leading the wayward to their home. Returning to simplicity and undisturbed by confusion, I release your soul, and by my spirit guide thee.”

 

She murmured the words softly, a great deal of her Aura draining away as his came to light.

 

She sighed and gently stepped away to watch him. He slowly opened his eyes, looking down at his hands to see a bright green light surrounding him.

 

“Woah…” He muttered, turning his hands over.

 

“ _That_ , is your Aura.” She said, a bit of deja vu hitting her. It felt like when she was with Jaune all over again. When he was in awe of his own Aura, his surprised expression. “You should be able to comfortably use your Semblance now.”

 

Izuku’s expression quickly changed from awe to concern. “I...I don’t know if I’d still be able to control it, I don’t know if I even _can_.”

 

She smiled. “And that’s why you’re here. So we can help you.”

 

“Ah…”

 

“Now, I’m feeling rather famished. How about we go to the cafeteria?”

 

“Okay.”

 

“And on the way, you can tell me about the weapon you have in mind. If you’d like.”

 

-.-

 

“Come on.”

 

“No.”

 

“Pleeeaaasseee?”

 

“No.”

 

“Izuku, come on.” Yang sighed.

 

“I look ridiculous.”

 

“Come on, Yang has a good sense of fashion.”

 

“While I agree with you, I think her sense is better suited for herself. Rather than me…how I even get stuck with you guys in the first place?” Izuku asked from the changing room.

 

“We kind of snatched you away.” Ruby rubbed the back of her head.

 

“Lovely.” He muttered, shaking his head at his reflection. Really, he felt kind of awkward. It felt it just didn’t suit him too well. Granted he liked the color, he had to give her that. But the sleeve size was a bit of a problem, the explosion shaped scars were somewhat visible.

 

“Come on, if you come out we’ll leave you alone and let you pick out the normal, walk around clothes. We’re just trying to help you find some combat gear.” Ruby tried to bargain.

 

“This is coming from someone who wears a skirt in battle.” He argued, frowning at his reflection. He was trying to fix his hair, it was a mess. When was the last time he had a hair cut?

 

“Hey, it’s a battle skirt for your information.” Ruby huffed and crossed her arms.

 

“I know you’re probably looking for a way out Izuku, let me tell ya. There’s none in the changing rooms.”

 

“Yeah, I already figured.” He sighed, leaning against the door.

 

“Great, then let’s just get this over with.” Yang tried to be encouraging.

 

Izuku groaned to himself, slowly opening the door and glaring at them. Seeing their excited grins. He slowly stepped out, staying close to the door.

 

He was wearing a green vest that came with a hood. A black undershirt with sleeves that came up to his forearm. Green gloves that have a bit of white and blue lining along the sides. Black pants and red shoes, he had at least insisted on that.

 

The top was a tad bit big on him, but Yang hadn’t really counted on him staying scrawny forever. She couldn’t help but notice how he kept his arms folded over each other.

 

“Looks good.” She nodded. “Still don’t know why you insist on red shoes though. Kind of throws off the whole look.”

 

“You got to choose everything else, let me have my shoes.” He argued.

 

“Alright, alright, fair.” She smiled.

 

Izuku huffed and looked away, scratching at his face.

 

“Well, what do you think? You’re gonna be fighting in this, can you move around?”

 

Izuku moved around a bit, finding no notable resistance. Nothing felt too loose or tight, it was fine overall.

 

“It’s good.” Izuku mumbled, pushing some hair out of his face. He saw that Ruby had disappeared to only god knows where.

 

“Well that’s good. As time goes on you can upgrade your outfit, change a few things out. Add and take away accessories, it goes on.”

 

“Yeah…” he muttered absentmindedly.

 

“Cool! So that looks like a yes. Alright then, I have some spare cash. You’ll pay me back right?” She smiled.

 

“Sure, when I manage to get some money.” He gave her a look. He couldn’t help but feel a bit guilty, her having to pay.

 

“Cool! Now go get changed so we can get out of here.” She looked at her phone. “Looks like Pyrrha and Jaune are looking for you.”

 

“They’re coming to save me.” He murmured.

 

“Hey, being around us isn’t that bad.” Yang crosses her arms.

 

_Kinda is when you remind me of someone I’d rather forget._

 

“Wait hold on! Before you change!” Ruby came barreling out of nowhere. She dashed forward and handed Izuku something.

 

“Try it on! Please?”

 

“Come on, I just got the green light…”

 

“Please? I promise this is the only thing I’ll ask of you when it comes to clothes.”

 

He shot her a suspecting look.

 

“I promise!”

 

He sighed and looked at what he was handed. It was a dark red headband, almost black. He decided not to complain any further and put it on.

 

He at least had to admit it felt nice not having to push away his hair. Though he wasn’t sure about it when looking into a mirror.

 

“It looks good.” Ruby smiled. “I noticed that your hair seems all over the place. I bet that’s kind of annoying huh?”

 

“Yeah, kinda is.” He said, looking over himself. When did he get the light burns along his hairline? They were faded so it had to be years ago.

 

“Still, looks kind of out of place. You get so used to seeing it all over the place. Hold on, can I try something?” She walked forward.

 

It took all of his willpower not to hide away in the changing room as she approached. He took a few steps back, much to her confusion.

 

She was in front of him, and before he could protest or run she just took two bits of his hair and freed them from the headband. Giving him two long bangs that barely reached to his cheeks.

 

“There, seems to suit you.” She hummed, crossing her arms.

 

He opened an eye he had clenched shut, stepping away from Yang to look over himself.

 

 _Just gotta make them stand up straight and I’d probably look like All Might._ _Sort of…_

 

“I guess.” He adjusted the band a bit. “Keeps the hair out of my face, good while studying and fighting…”

 

“So it's a keeper?” Ruby asked.

 

Izuku shrugged. “Sure.”

 

“Yay!” She cheered.

 

“Yang? Ruby?” A familiar voice called out. “Izuku?”

 

“Over here.” Yang responded, drawing Pyrrha over to them. Accompanied by Jaune and Weiss.

 

“So, what do you think?” Jaune asked Weiss as she walked away from them.

 

“No, no, and absolutely not.” She rolled her eyes and walked over to her teammates. “There you two are! I was looking all over for you. We were supposed to meet up to eat at that cafe. Blake is still holding our seats.” She crossed her arms.

 

“Sorry Weiss, we saw Izuku and decided to take the opportunity to help him choose out a new outfit.”

 

“In the form of shoving me in a fitting room and tossing clothes over the door.” Izuku argued.

 

“Well at least you look nice.” Pyrrha commented. “It suits you, I will admit the headband is a nice touch as well.”

 

Izuku once again curled in on himself and tried to hide in his arms. He felt his face starting to warm up.

 

“I’m gonna change.” He muttered, fleeing back to the small room. He quickly changed out of the outfit and back to the borrowed sweater and pants.

 

He sighed as he exited the room with the articles of clothing in his arms.

 

“Can we leave now?” He asked.

 

“I guess so.” Yang smiled, earning a sigh of relief.

 

“Although I wonder if that shirt might go a bit better with.”

 

“You said we could leave!”

 

“I’m kidding!”

 

While they waited in line he began to tune out the noise around him, getting stuck in his head.

 

He still had some stuff to get done. His weapons and equipment were going to be done either tomorrow or the next day, so there was that. He had to get a move on with training, he had already started coming up with ways to push himself harder.

 

He would stay up late most nights planning some sort of regimen for himself, and carrying out what he could that night. Even if it was something as simple as pushups or sit-ups, or sneaking out to go on a run.

 

It was the small things, but he had to start somewhere didn’t he?

 

Sure it left him exhausted, but that was a small price to pay in order to get better. It also gave him something to do on the nights he couldn’t sleep at all.

 

Pyrrha gave him this second chance, gave him hope for his future. Like hell he was going to squander it.

 

While he went though his training he also made attempts to activate his Semblance. So far, no luck. Though his _could_ feel his Aura. Whenever he fell over or crashed into something, where he would be expecting a bruise or scrape there was nothing. The pain had faded even faster than it normally would as well.

 

It was a relief in all honesty, it really did ‘bear his burdens’ like Pyrrha had said.

 

“Izuku!”

 

He jumped in surprise and nearly fell over when someone called his name.

 

“Huh? What, yeah?” He looked around and was surprised to see they were no longer in the store.

 

“There you are, you were kind of drifting off there for a bit.” Jaune patted his shoulder and smiled down at him. “You feeling okay?”

 

“I’m fine.” Izuku nodded. “Just tired.”

 

“You should try to get more rest.” Pyrrha glanced at him. “It’s not good to deprive yourself of sleep.”

 

“I know.” He put on a smile and rubbed the back of his head. “I just have those nights where I can’t sleep you know? It happens.”

 

“Maybe you could ask for something to help with that.” Jaune suggested.

 

“You don’t want to fall behind...at all. Believe me I would know.”

 

_I am a lot further behind than you know Jaune…_

 

“I’ll be fine.” He tried to assure them. “I can function on little to no sleep.” He shrugged.

 

Pyrrha shot him a worried glance, he avoided her gaze.

 

“How though? You drown yourself in coffee?”

 

“No...maybe. Listen-”

 

“If you keep that up you’re going to stay short.” Pyrrha lightly teased, giggling at the look he shot her.

 

“So what if I’m short...” Izuku mumbled, looking off to the side after a moment. “Besides that’s a myth…”

 

“I’m not so sure about that, I’ve seen Ruby down a cup or two in the morning and…”

 

“I’m still taller than her!” He protested.

 

“True, true...well I mean you’re still short for a…” Jaune stopped after a moment. “Hold on how old are you again? 16?”

 

“Uh…” He looked to the side.

 

The two glanced down at him. “Izuku how old are you?” Pyrrha asked.

 

“I feel that information is not necessarily relevant.” He answered, looking straight ahead.

 

“Izuku…” The woman put her hands on her hips as they walked.

 

“What difference does it make?” He asked, beginning to pick up his pace. “I mean, why is that important?”

 

The two were quiet before Jaune spoke up.

 

“We don’t know that much about you, Izuku.” He started. “You’re kind of a private person. You don’t really talk about yourself, so...we want to get to know you ya know?”

 

Izuku looked between the two, slowing down.

 

“We try not to pry, since you don’t seem that comfortable around most people.” He went on. “We try to tell a little about ourselves, just a bit to try to get you to open up. I mean, all of us are kind of curious about you one way or another. We want to know about you, where you’re from, your life before, even just the little things. Like your favorite food, color, hobbies. Stuff you tell your friends.”

 

He said nothing as he walked beside the two, turning his gaze downwards.

 

_A private person...it’s not that._

 

He _was_ comfortable around Jaune and Pyrrha, if anything he considered them his crutch in a way. He felt safest around those two, yet even then he tended to keep them at an arm's length. He learned to like the walls he put around himself, it kept him safe. He was less likely to get hurt that way.

 

_“Do you inherently distrust them?”_

 

_It’s not that either...mostly. I’m just-_

 

He took a deep breath before coming to a stop, confusing the two.

 

They’d been slowly chipping away at his defenses, trying to get him to open up. They were willing to befriend him, he even _knew_ this was a second chance.

 

The people from Remnant, and those from is world were not the same. They were vastly different. People were here kinder, they didn’t sneer at him, no one tried to corner him and beat him senseless.

 

He couldn’t change overnight, he knew that. He couldn’t turn back into that optimistic, bright eyed child who was open with everyone. Who gave a smile to everyone around him, who chased after the dreams of heroism. Someone who saw the best in everyone.

 

Maybe it was time to start building bridges, he owed it to them at least.

 

“Izuku?” They looked over him in concern.

 

“...I’m 14.”

 


	8. Vytal Festival

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The tournament begins, and it seems someone has their eyes set on Izuku

“So, how did you sleep? I would’ve asked this morning, but you had arrived a bit late.” Pyrrha looked over to Izuku, who plopped down beside her and Jaune.

 

“Victory food! And yeah, that is a good question. You look kinda rough.” Ruby sat down on the other side of the booth, one seat away from the greenette.

 

Izuku only groaned and let his head slam onto the table.

 

“Ooh, that bad?” Yang cringed.

 

“Mistakes were made…” He mumbled.

 

“How so? Oh, I would like your regular please.”

 

“Does it have anything to do why your hands are burned, and your singed hair?” Blake looked up from her bowl of fish.

 

“Yes.” 

 

“Ooh, I smell a story. Spill it!” Nora poked at him before a large bowl of noodles slid in front of her.

 

“Well before he tells us his story, I wanna know what he thought of our fight!” Ruby tapped on the desk with her hands. 

 

Izuku looked up a bit before a large bowl slid in front of him. 

 

“Uh, well overall it was pretty impressive.” He started, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. “Yang taking out three of them in one go was pretty cool, of course, that was also due to some luck since you had no idea that she would have been able to shatter that ball of ice.”

 

“Oh! Speaking of that, Weiss I didn’t know you could manipulate your Glyphs and Dust to make something like that! I had figured you could only just like toss it out.” He shoved some food into his mouth. Seeming to regain some of the life in him.

 

“Yes, I can manipulate the Dust I use with my Glyphs. It takes quite a bit of focus to accomplish a feat like that.” She smiled.

 

“I gotta admit, taking care of the hoverboard girl first was a pretty good idea. She’s the most mobile, and she was able to manipulate the state of her hoverboard. I wonder what kind of advantages that would have given them if she had managed to stay in the battle…”

 

Yang looked over to Blake. “I think he needed some food in him to bring him back to life.”

 

Blake only hummed in agreement. 

 

“Though I will admit when that guy was frozen to the ground; you probably should have knocked him out just to make sure he would cause any trouble later on.”

 

“We were kind of in a tight spot to do that.” Yang looked over. 

 

“Yeah, that’s true. But still, it was a pretty cool fight.”

 

“Now that you seem better, would you like to tell us what happened last night?” Pyrrha asked.

 

Izuku groaned and looked down, still eating his noodles.

 

“Mistakes were made.”

 

“You already said that.” Ren raised an eyebrow.

 

“Mistakes were made.” He rested his head in his hands and sighed. “I couldn’t sleep last night, so I decided to go on a run…”

 

“It’s you who’s been running around at night?” Weiss stood up. “You have an awful habit of knocking things over while people are trying to sleep! Speaking of which, when on earth do you sleep?”

 

“I had finished my laps, and I was making my way back to my room when I ran into a group of what I’m going to assume were visiting students.” 

 

“Excuse me?”

 

“I guess they were doing pre-celebration of the Vytal Festival, and I had the pleasure of being on the receiving end of that.” He flinched as he flexed his hands. “I was walking back when I saw them and decided to jump into the bushes and get back from there.”

 

“You jumped in the-why would you do that?” They all looked at him.

 

“You guys act like I’m good at talking to people! Anyway, I was making my way through the bushes when I heard one of them say ‘What the heck? I give up.’ And proceeded to throw a pack of fireworks into said bushes.” 

 

“Oh no!” Pyrrha gasped.

 

“They thought it didn’t light, only to be proven wrong as they started popping and cracking while they fell over me. All I heard were the fireworks and them screaming as they ran away.” Izuku rested his head on the table again.

 

“And they singed your hair and hands…”

 

“I was trying to throw them out of the bushes so a fire wouldn’t start.” He held up his hands. “As you can see that went very well.” He looked at Pyrrha. “So no, I didn’t sleep very well last night.”

 

Yang shook her head. “Did you happen to see who did it?”

 

“Uh...no. But I thought I saw a tail on one of them.”

 

Blake sighed and rested her head in her hands. “I swear…”

 

“Ugh…” Jaune pushed his bowl away and fell over the table. “So full…”

 

“Were the fireworks also the cause of those?” Pyrrha pointed to sunburst like injuries on the exposed parts of his arms.

 

Izuku looked down and quickly tried to pull his sleeves over them, obviously failing. “Uh, don’t worry about those. Anyway, your guys’ fight is in this next set right?”

 

“Er, yes. We’re the first ones up after the intermission.” Pyrrha leaned back a bit, giving him some space.

 

“So afterward I’ll head to the Forge and pick up my-”

 

“Oh, you’re picking up your weapon today?” Yang looked over. 

 

“Ooh, can we come with? I wanna see what you designed!” Ruby stood up, a grin spreading across her face.

 

Izuku raised an eyebrow. “Why would you wanna do that?”

 

“Uh, because you’re our friend. And, weapons are an extension of ourselves. They’re a way we can describe ourselves in battle and-” 

 

Yang cut her off with a forkful of noodles in Ruby’s face. “As you can see, Ruby is more of a weapon person, than a people person.”

 

“Clearly,” Izuku mumbled. “And, I guess. Though it’s not a ceremony or something, I’m just picking up my weapon.”

 

“Perhaps we can start sparring with you.” Ren offered. “We can see how experienced you are.”

 

“I don’t think I wanna get beaten up by all of you.” 

 

“We’re not gonna beat you up.” Yang smiled. 

 

Izuku gave her a look and looked to Pyrrha and Jaune.

 

“How do you feel about your upcoming fight anyway? Was it really a good idea to eat before?”

 

“Of course! It will give us energy.” 

 

Jaune let out another groan before looking up at her. “Pyrrha, if I barf I’m blaming you.”

 

“Oh! Aim it at the enemy.” Nora grinned.

 

Izuku and Ren shot her a look while the eldest spoke up. “Nora, that’s disgusting. But if you do feel the urge…”

 

“Yeah yeah, I got it.” He gave a thumbs up.

 

“Please try not to.” Izuku looked over.

 

“Honestly that’s my goal…”

 

“So, _are_ you guys ready for this fight?” Ruby leaned over, repeating Izuku’s question.

 

“Sure we are!” Nora started. “We have a world-renowned fighter, what’s basically a ninja, I can bench five of me and...Jaune. We’ve trained all year, and our weapons are awesome! Glynda barely yells at us anymore and uh...Jaune.”

 

Ren looked over. “Are you gonna take that?”

 

“She’s not wrong…”

 

“I’m kidding, he knows I’m kidding. Besides, don’t be so nervous. The worst that could happen is that we lose.” 

 

“True,” Izuku mumbled. 

 

“And then it’s a couple more years walking around school with people knowing we’re failures. Our friends will slowly abandon us to preserve their social status, we won’t be able to show our faces in class. No one will sit with us in the cafeteria, and Ren and I have no parents so we have no home left to go to. And we’ll officially be named Team Loser!”

 

She laughed for a moment before descending into wails.

 

Izuku watched her then looked forward. “I thought I had problems overthinking things…”

 

Jaune and Pyrrha looked at him. “You do!”

 

Ren sighed before speaking up. “As you can see, we’re feeling pretty good.”

 

Pyrrha shook her head and stood up, resting a hand on Nora and Jaune’s heads. “Don’t fret, if anything we should be looking forward to a fight with actual guidelines. And not...murderers.”

 

“Yeah don’t sweat it, we’ve all faced way worse before.” Yang leaned back in her seat.

 

_Grimm?_

 

He’s never seen one, for all he knew the Grimm were actually worse than people. And if the diagrams and illustrations he saw of them were accurate, then yes. Yes, they _had_ to be worse. Then again, underestimating the people here just because of the monsters isn’t wise.

 

“Well let’s see. Grimm invasions, violent extremists, a destructive sociopath.”

 

Izuku choked on his food. He coughed for a bit before looking over. “Excuse me what?!”

 

“Oh, that’s right. We should probably fill Iz in huh?” Yang looked over to her sister.

 

“And that’s all while we’re still in training, imagine what it’ll be like when we graduate!” Ruby beamed.

 

“Don’t ignore me. And Iz?” He looked over to Yang who shrugged. 

 

“Would Team JNPR please report to the battlegrounds immediately.” A voice over a loudspeaker was heard. Giving an order rather than a suggestion.

 

“Yes! Like they were scheduled to, several minutes ago.”

 

“Dr. Oobleck doesn’t sound too happy.”

 

“Well, it looks like this is it.” Pyrrha smiled before reaching over to ruffle Izuku’s hair. “We’ll see you later.”

 

“Go get ‘em!” Team RWBY stood up to begin heading over to the seats.

 

“Come on Izuku, maybe we can still get good seats!” 

 

“Yeah okay...but what was all that about? What do you mean violent extremists and a sociopath?” He looked concerned.

 

“We can fill you in on the way to the Forge. Come on, let’s go before they start!” 

 

He was about to protest when his hood was grabbed and he was quickly dragged off.

 

As they went on their way, two pairs of eyes watched them rush away.

 

“You think he’s the one that did it?”

 

“Dunno, maybe we should make sure.”

 

**-.-**

 

“I mean overall it’s a well-balanced team, they’ve got a sniper on their side which helps. She was quick to get off the main field and hide, although she was easily noticed once she made a shot. So maybe it’d be wiser to move around every time a shot is made so as to throw off the other team and-”

 

“How much detail are you going to go into this?”

 

“He’s analyzing, shh leave him alone.”

 

Ruby turned her attention from the fight to Izuku eagerly as the mumbling went on. Catching what he was referencing almost a second too late. 

 

“Though Jaune and Pyrrha have an advantage over them in defense, seeing as they can repel any attack with their shields and-” He cut himself off and cringed as Jaune was smacked in the face with his own shield. 

 

“Though, that sniper is what they should be focusing on. Yeah she’s busy keeping the others on their toes, but it’s only a matter of time until she turns her attention on Nora.” Izuku started up again, watching the girl climb the mountain. It was a pleasant surprise to discover her Semblance the way he did. He had honestly been ready to panic when she had directly taken that electric charge.

 

They all watched as Jaune called out to Pyrrha. She ran forward and knocked away the opponent keeping him busy. She jumped onto his shield and was thrown into the air, putting her own shield up and blocking a shot from the sniper. 

 

After Pyrrha had been knocked down Nora had made it to the top, taking the lightning head on.

 

“I have to wonder, how much electricity can Nora take?” Izuku tilted his head, watching as she shot grenades at the sniper from afar. Causing destruction to those clusters of trees.

 

“I don’t know, maybe you could ask her.” 

 

“If her Aura ran out would she still be able to take electric charges? And if the more she absorbs, the stronger she is that really does ask the question if she has a limit. I mean, if she’s able to take hundreds of thousands of volts in one go, how much-oh.” He stopped himself as she slammed the ground with her hammer, blowing three opponents away and sending them to regroup. 

 

“It looks like even without too much electrical charge, like Yang she’s the strength element of the team.” 

 

Weiss looked over. “And to answer your question no, nobody can use their Semblance without Aura. Aura powers our Semblances.”

 

“Oh, right.”

 

“Speaking of which, you find out what yours is?” Yang asked.

 

“No.” He raised and eyebrow as Jaune said something about flower power.

 

“Well I’m sure we’ll find out what it is. Sometimes we all need a little push to find it.” Ruby smiled encouragingly. 

 

“How exactly did you find yours?” He asked without turning his eyes away from the fight. Watching in amusement as Jaune tried to explain the team attacks. 

 

“Mine are completely hereditary,” Weiss answered. “So I knew what it was going to be.”

 

“Mine was an accident, I was running around the house with Yang and all of a sudden I went super fast and hit a wall. I broke a lot of vases back then.” Ruby rubbed the back of her head.

 

“I found mine during training, dad was showing no mercy. I ended up getting frustrated and when I went to punch him, I ended up punching a tree. Sent it into splinters!” Yang grinned.

 

“What about yours Blake?” He turned his eyes from the fight for a moment.

 

“Well-”

 

“Hey! What do you think you’re doing?”

 

“Trying to have a team meeting, thank you very little.” Jaune frowned at the member of Team BRNZ.

 

Weiss rolled her eyes and sighed, shaking her head. Meanwhile Izuku found himself grinning, covering his mouth while holding back a laugh. 

 

“We’re in the middle of a fight!”

 

“And we’re in the middle of a conversation what don’t you get about that!” Jaune raised his voice.

 

“They just can’t catch a break, huh?” Yang asked. 

 

“Nope.”

 

They watched Jaune sighed and turn to Nora after a moment, saying something about a hammer.

 

Nora only grinned and jumped up, landing in front of the team and slamming the hammer into them. Knocking them out of the ring and into the barrier. 

 

Some of the audience collectively cringed in sympathetic pain while others whooped and cheered. 

 

“And with that Team JNPR wins by knockout! Literally. Can someone go make sure they’re okay?”

 

Izuku sighed and was about to get up when Ruby stopped him. “Where are you going?”

 

“I thought we were gonna head to the Forge?”

 

“Yeah, but maybe we should wait a bit. Jaune and the others still have to choose who’s going into the doubles round. That might take a minute, and they gotta put that info in. So they’ll be a minute.”

 

“Oh…”

 

Izuku sat back down again and looked down at the arena again, watching it clear out. 

 

“Are there any other fights you guys are looking forward to?” He asked after a bit.

 

“Yeah, there’s Sun’s and Neptune’s. They’re on the same team so it won’t be two separate fights.”

 

“Sun and Neptune?” He asked.

 

“Oh! We should introduce you to them, I think you’d like them.” Ruby looked down to see two teams beginning to emerge. 

 

Izuku shrugged. 

 

“You know I gotta ask, do you know anyone who’s watching the fights right now?” Yang looked over. 

 

“What do you mean?” Izuku asked.

 

“I mean, I know my dad is watching. Since he knows about Ruby and I being in the Festival. Did you watch the Festival with your family whenever it happened?”

 

Izuku bit his lip and sunk into his seat as the announcement came on. That was one thing he didn’t want to deal with, one thing he didn’t even _want_ to think about.

 

“Team SSSN, versus Team NDGO!”

 

“Izuku?”

 

The girls watched him as he mumbled something to himself, keeping his eyes trained ahead.

 

He’s been gone for days, at least two or three weeks now. Maybe more if there’s the possibility time moves differently in Remnant!

 

Did anyone care he was gone?

 

He looked down at the arena again, watching the two teams share some banter. Or more like one team, it seemed rather one-sided. Two of them looked familiar, but he couldn’t really focus enough to remember where he had seen them. All he could really hear was Weiss sudden change in attitude towards the teams. 

 

“The desert and the ocean, sounds like a good match up.” Ruby laughed.

 

“Oh no…” Blake muttered, watching Team SSSN.

 

“What, what is it?”

 

“Neptune’s afraid of the water.” She answered.

 

“What?!”

 

“This can only end so well…”

 

Izuku sighed and leaned back, looking around. His mind elsewhere at the moment, ignoring the yelling from the arena.

 

 _Did_ anybody wonder where he was?

 

Probably not.

 

Why would they?

 

He was poor Izuku Midoriya, the Quirkless boy who had no potential. The one that everyone overlooked. The one that no one felt the need to worry about, unless they needed a punching bag.

 

Did anyone see him on top of that roof? Did anyone even _want_ to try and stop him? What did it look like when he suddenly disappeared from that reality? 

 

Did his mother even care in the slightest that he was missing? Hell, did she even _know_?

 

_Why does it bother you so much? You’re happier here aren’t you? So why bother yourself with it?_

 

_If I’m not even wanted there, how long would it take for me to lose whatever ‘value’ I have here? And then...then what they’ll push me away won’t they? They’ll just leave me._

 

_No they won’t! They’re your friends aren’t they? They won’t abandon you just because-_

 

“Izuku?” 

 

His eyes snapped over to Ruby. She was leaning over the seat to look at him. 

 

“You okay?” She asked. 

 

“Yeah I’m fine. Why?” He raised an eyebrow. 

 

“Uh…” She pointed at his bouncing leg, and twitching hands. “Are you sure you feel okay?”

 

“Y-Yeah. I’m good, don’t worry about it.” He chewed on his lip and sat up, turning his eyes to the arena again. He wasn’t even sure what was going on.

 

He frowned to himself and stood up after a bit, moving off to the side and walking away. 

 

“Izuku, where are you going?” Ruby called after him.

 

“I’m just gonna grab something to drink. I’ll be right back.” He waved and walked away, pushing past a few people to get to a more open area of sorts.

 

It was a bit hard, considering the colosseum was floating in the air, and everywhere was packed. Maybe he could find a transport to take him down to the mainland. 

 

He wanted space, he _needed_ space. He wanted to think, yet at the same time he dreaded his own thoughts.

 

Until then he had decided to settle for walking about at a brisk pace until he could find one of the transports. He _knew_ where it was, he just couldn’t remember. Damn it the colosseum is a giant octagon how hard was it suppose to be!

 

He frowned to himself as he saw another corner, that was two now. For all he knew he would have to go in a giant circle before finding what he wanted.

 

He was about to turn another corner before a hand placed itself on his shoulder. 

 

He jumped and darted forward a bit before turning to look behind him. Only to be met with two new faces.

 

“Hey there, you okay? You seem a little lost.” The first one stepped forward, a girl with green hair. Red eyes.

 

“Huh, what no I’m fine. J-Just heading to the transport. Gotta make a stop at the fairgrounds you know.” He started backing up.

 

“Really? We’re actually heading over there too. Mind if we join you?” The other one stepped forward. Gray hair, his eyes seemed to be gray as well. 

 

Izuku only shrugged and began walking forward again, trying to put some distance between them. They caught up in no time though.

 

“So, we haven’t really seen you around until recently. You a sudden transfer from somewhere?” The girl asked. 

 

“You could say-”

 

“You seem a little young though.” The boy crossed his arms as he walked. “You...what about 15, 14 or something?”

 

Izuku swallowed hard and quickened his pace. Another corner, hopefully the transport was somewhere ahead. 

 

“Merc.” She hit her friend on the shoulder. “Don’t be rude.”

 

“Aw come on, I’m just trying to be friendly.”

 

Izuku strained to look ahead, sighing as he saw one of the transports. 

 

_Thank god!_

 

He looked over his shoulder to the other two and turned back around, taking off at a light run. Rushing over to join a small group of people who seemed to have the same idea. 

 

He quickly caught his breath and walked forward onto the nearly full transport, or at least he _would have_ if he hadn’t been stopped.

 

“Sorry kid, this one’s a bit full. You’ll have to hop on the next one.”

 

“What?” He looked up at the guard. 

 

He didn’t say anything else as it closed off and began descending to the ground. He only watched and groaned after a moment. 

 

“That’s a bit...unfortunate.” The girl walked up, putting a hand on his shoulder. 

 

He flinched and slapped it off. “Please, don’t do that.” He mumbled, shifting from foot to foot.

 

He didn’t like this, why what was it? Why did they make him feel so nervous? 

 

_You’re being ridiculous! Why would they hurt you?_

 

_Why wouldn’t they?_

 

Izuku looked between the two for a bit before casting his gaze downwards. He sort of recognized them, they were in the tournament. Where was the rest of their team?

 

“So, are you participating in the tournament?” Merc asked.

 

“No, just spectating.” 

 

He took a deep breath, trying to ignore the pounding of his heart. 

 

They would be alone with him on a transport, would they leave him alone when they made it to the ground? Or would they insist on being ‘friendly’?

 

The thought terrified him. Why would they follow him? What did they want? Did they find out he was the one who caused all that chaos that day? Did they want payback or something? Had he hurt them?

 

The color left his face at the thought. 

 

He didn’t mean to.

 

He didn’t want to.

 

He would never-

 

“Izuku!” 

 

He felt himself loose the breath he was holding. He hurriedly turned around to see Ruby rushing forward. 

 

“Hey…”

 

“Hey where are you going? You know you missed the fight, it was the last one of the day!” She stopped in front of him.

 

“O-Oh...well I uh-”

 

“Ruby. Nice to see you.” The girl greeted.

 

“Oh! Emerald, Mercury. It’s nice to see you guys, I thought you weren’t gonna catch any more fights.” 

 

“Well, Merc and I kinda changed our minds. We wanted to see what the others had in them, in case we go up against them. You know, doubles round and all that.”

 

“Pretty interesting huh? Man this last one with Team SSSN was so close.”  

 

“Yeah, we thought the other team was gonna win so we had decided to leave early. Grab something to eat while it’s not that crowded down there.”

 

“Yeah that’s pretty smart.” Ruby smiled as she rubbed the back of her head. Pausing when the transport came back. “Oh, it’s back. You wanna come down with us?” Ruby asked, starting to board while Izuku waltzed right in.

 

“Nah it’s okay. We’ll see ya later.” They walked off as a crowd of people came towards the transport. Cutting off their vision.

 

After a time Izuku coughed and looked at Ruby.

 

“So uh, friends of yours? This Emerald and Mercury?”

 

“Yeah, we met a while ago before you showed up.They’re pretty nice, got kinda lost on the first day here.”

 

“Fun.”

 

“Mhm.” Ruby nodded.

 

“Hey, so where are Yang and the other’s?” He looked down at her. 

 

“They went to go greet Team SSSN and congratulate them. I noticed you hadn’t come back so I came to find you.”

 

“Ah.”

 

The two sat in silence while they headed back down to the fairgrounds. One looking out the window while the other stood straight ahead. 

 

“Hey uh, so are you sure you’re okay?” Ruby asked as the transport landed, and the doors opened. “Back in the arena you seemed kinda bothered by something. Was is something one of said or…”

 

“Oh! Uh, I’m fine Ruby really. Just some thoughts that got out of hand ya know?” He nervously laughed. “I just needed to clear my head.”

 

“Oh, okay. But you know, if you need anything we’re all here for you. Pyrrha, Jaune, Nora, Ren, Blake, Yang and I. Even Weiss. We wanna be your friend, and I sorta get that making friends is hard...I mean I was surprisingly able to befriend Weiss even though she can be kinda mean sometimes. But yeah.”

 

He nodded and stopped after a while. “R-Right. So, uh, where's the Forge?” 

 

“Oh, follow me!” She ran off with Izuku in tow.

 

**-.-**

 

“So Jaune wore a dress to the dance?” Izuku asked, holding back a laugh. “Why?”

 

“He said he’d do it if no one asked Pyrrha to the dance. And apparently…”

 

“Wait wait wait, hold on. Jaune didn’t ask Pyrrha, aren’t they...together?” He asked, confused.

 

“You can see it too!” She yelled and pointed at him. 

 

“Wait, so they’re not?” 

 

“Nope.”

 

“Huh…” 

 

They had made it back to the main part of the school grounds after a while, a few ways away from the Forge. During the time Ruby told him about the adventures they had over the course of the year.

 

“So that’s all the stories I really have. Grimm invasions, the White Fang, Roman Torchwick. It been a lot this whole year. But just think about how it’ll be when we graduate and we’re full fledged Huntresses and Huntsmen!” She sounded excited at the prospect.

 

“You’ll probably have even more adventures like that.” He laughed.

 

“Yeah, probably. So what about you?” She looked up at him.

 

“Me?”

 

“Yeah you. Duh.” She laughed. “Do you have any interesting stories?”

 

He rubbed the back of his head, and began to slow his walk. “Uh, well not really…”

 

“Really? What about those?” She pointed at his arms. “I’m sure there’s a story behind that.”

 

He cringed and began pulling at his sleeves. “Y-Yeah no. That’s a story that I’m not..too...I don’t wanna share much about those.” He mumbled.

 

“Oh. Did...Did someone hurt you or-”

 

“It’s not something I really wanna share.” He snapped at her, pausing after a moment. “Sorry.”

 

“No, it’s okay. I shouldn’t have pushed it.” She offered a small smile.

 

They just nodded to themselves and walked on in silence for a time.

 

It wasn’t until a large building came into view that conversation had started up again.

 

“How do you not get lost around here?” Izuku hesitantly asked, tired of the quiet.

 

“I actually got lost on my first day here, with Jaune. It took awhile but we know our way around now.” She suddenly jumped as her scroll began to go off. She pulled it out and looked at the caller. “Well, speaking of Jaune.”

 

She answered and put the device to her ear. “Hi Jaune!”

 

“Did you save him as Vomit Boy?” Izuku asked, having seen the contact information.

 

“Shh! Yeah? Oh, well we kinda made our way to the Forge. Well I mean we’re technically here already. The building is just up ahead.” She began walking back and forth. 

 

“Ruby kidnapped me!” He said in a loud voice, laughing a bit as she waved her free hand at him.

 

“No I didn’t! Don’t listen to him!” She paused as the voice on the other end spoke up, excited about something. “Ooh, that sounds fun. Victory food all around! Yeah, okay I’ll tell the others. Alrighty then, see ya!” She hung up and smiled.

 

“Well you’ve heard of victory lunch-”

 

“That’s not a thing.”

 

“It is now, and now we got victory dinner! We’re all gonna meet up for food in a while. You wanna come?” 

 

“Uh, sure I guess. I’m kinda hungry.” He shrugged. 

 

“Cool! Come on, let’s go get your weapon. We can save sparring for another day.” She grabbed his arm and ran off, whisking them to the building. 

 

A few people passing by just saw a blur of red and green. 

 

Ruby stopped at the entrance, leaving rose petals in her wake. Meanwhile Izuku was trying to ground himself from the dizzy spell. “Do you do that all the time?” He asked.

 

“Helps me get around quick.” She grinned. “Now come on, a few people are coming here for maintenance. But picking up thankfully isn’t the hard part.” She sighed.

 

“Then what is?” 

 

“Filling in the forms for what happened to your weapon, what you need fixed, and why. Whatever adjustments you need. It’s a lot of stuff. But even for as long as that takes, they get stuff done really fast here.”

 

“That’s nice.” He hummed to himself. They were the support department in a way, but only specializing in weapons. Whereas departments he’d heard of for heroes specialized in gear and their hero suits. Adding and taking things from designs to help with combat. Whereas in Remnant they just picked out their clothes and that was that. They didn’t just depend on that for protection, but also their Aura. 

 

“Here we are.” Ruby said, standing off to the side. “Just tell them your name. Or put your scroll in the thing.”

 

“I don’t have a scroll!” 

 

“Well then tell-”

 

“Ahem.” They both stopped as a gruff voice caught their attention.

 

Izuku coughed and faced forward, met with a tired looking man. He tapped his finger against the desk.

 

“Er, I’m picking up a weapon?” He said.

 

“Are you?”

 

“Y-Yes sir.”

 

“Hmph, name?”

 

“I-Izuku Midoriya.” He stammered.

 

The man stared at him for a moment before walking off. Izuku was about to turn to Ruby to say something when the man loudly placed a case on the desk. Without a word he opened it, showing the boy the weapon he designed.

 

Ruby at some point had crept over and looked over his shoulder. “Ooh, those look interesting.” 

 

The man closed it and pushed it forward. “Treat them well.” He grunted.

 

Izuku wordlessly nodded and took the case, turning to walk away with Ruby.

 

It wasn’t until they had exited that Ruby spoke up. “Hey, so you didn’t tell us you don’t have a scroll!”

 

“I thought it was obvious.” He shrugged.

 

“One might have thought you were trying to avoid giving people your number.” She put her hands on her hips. 

 

Izuku shrugged, unsure what to say. “So, should we start heading back?” 

 

“Yeah, that sounds good.”

 

They began to walk back the way they came, staying quiet for a time. It wasn’t until they were near the main grounds of Beacon that Izuku spoke up again. 

 

“K-Katsuki.”

 

“Huh?” The redhead stopped and looked up. 

 

Izuku paused right beside her. “His name is...Katsuki.”

 

“...Oh.”

 

Ruby looked down, seeming to think over her words before she looked up again. “You wanna...what?” She stopped to see a large crowd had gathered. “What’s going on?” She looked around. 

 

“No idea.” He squinted and looked around, spotting a head of white hair not too far away. “Hold on I think I see Weiss. Come on.” He began to weave through the crowd, muttering ‘excuse mes’ as he went. 

 

He nearly fell over by the time they had reached her. He ended up falling over with a loud thud after Ruby rushed forward. 

 

“Hey, what’s going on?” She looked at her partner.

 

Izuku groaned as he got to his feet.

 

“Some crazy guy just started attacking my sister!” She exclaimed.

 

_Crazy guy?_

 

Izuku looked forward to see some black haired man with a cape trading blows with a white haired woman.

 

_Wait hold on Weiss has a sister?!_

 

“Oh no! Who would...that is my uncle!” She shouted.

 

“What!” Izuku and Weiss asked in unison.

 

“Kick her butt Uncle Qrow!”

 

“Teach him respect Winter.”

 

“Or they could just _not_. “ Izuku scratched at his face, watching the fight. His eyes darted around, trying to keep them in his sights.

 

He jumped when Ruby suddenly grabbed his arm. “Are you gonna do your analyzing thing?” She asked.

 

“I would but..” He tried to follow them. “They’re moving too fast. I can hardly-woah!”

 

The crowd gasped as the man slammed his sword into the ground, shattering the stone. Winter, as Weiss had called her, flipped over onto the ground. Gaining some distance between her and the man. 

 

They traded a few more quick blows before the woman began running up the building. Only to have the man running forward shooting at her. Barely missing a few times.

 

_Are they full fledged Hunters? Sure looks like it..._

 

“Go Uncle Qrow!” Ruby cheered. 

 

The crowd paused when another shot rang out and a cloud of white steam surrounded her. Only to start up again when she jumped out. 

 

Izuku watched as the man put his blade up and planted himself firmly, taking the blow of the dual blades. Until they both crashed to the ground. Once again they were darting around and and clashing blades.

 

“They both move around so quickly on the ground. Even in the air they seem to be able to maintain that kind of speed. Which is impressive…”

 

They all watched as the man was knocked away, stopping himself as he plunged the blade into the ground. 

 

The woman scowled as she slammed a blade into the ground, a giant Glyph forming beneath her. What looked to be small Nevermores forming around her.

 

“Woah…” Izuku’s eyes lit up.

 

She grunted as she pointed her sword forward, sending some of them flying at him. Her assault only stopped as he sliced at her, making her sidestep.

 

Izuku looked over to Weiss. “Can you do that?” He asked, looking between her and the fight. He looked over to see the woman summon a Glyph behind her. Getting into a stance with both swords.

 

Meanwhile the man kept a grin on his face, pressing some kind of trigger to make his sword extend and curve upwards. 

 

He didn’t get an answer as the crowd began to cheer louder. 

 

Izuku leaned forward, determined to see what was going to happen next. 

 

That was, until the man paused. He pressed the trigger again and made his weapon return to it’s normal form. Everyone groaned as he sheathed it. 

 

The three heard a few gasps as he leaned forward and made the motion of ‘come here’.

 

Winter’s eyes widened as she yelled and took off, only a blue and white blur as she charged forward. 

 

“Uncle Qrow! What are-”

 

“Schnee!” A loud voice yelled over the crowd, making the woman freeze in place. Her blade mere inches from the man’s throat.

 

She slowly turned around to see a man accompanied by armed guards and a girl. “What in the world do you think you’re doing?”

 

Izuku leaned over to the two girls. “Who’s that?” He asked.

 

“Have you never heard of General Ironwood?” Weiss crossed her arms.

  
  


“Uh...well…”

 

“Uncle Qrow!” Ruby ran off to greet the man she called her uncle. Meanwhile, Ozpin and Glynda emerged from the academy, breaking up the crowd. Assuring the crowd of an upcoming fight with better seating, and the promise of popcorn.

 

He was about to ask Weiss again about her Glyphs when she walked off to speak with her sister about something.

 

Izuku sighed and rubbed the back of his head, turning away from the scene. 

 

 _I guess I can meet up with them later_. _Probably best to drop this off in my room…_

 

He began to walk away, weaving through a few people. He overheard a few conversations about the fight, choosing to tune them out for the time being. 

 

He looked over his shoulder to see how the others were doing. 

 

He faltered though, and nearly fell over when he saw a pair of red eyes staring right into him. They narrowed, and the man dropped the girl hanging off his arm. 

 

Izuku turned around and began walking away quickly, feeling a bit of panic rise as a familiar chill ran up his spine.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I rewrote this chapter like 5 times before I finally made this!
> 
> Whoop!
> 
> In the meantime I've sort of decided on where our dear boy Izuku is gonna go next. I'm currently caught between two worlds, but I'll figure it out. Anywhosits
> 
> Have a good night/day you guys!
> 
> Ps. I'm really bad at names his chapter, I'm sorry


	9. A Smile

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Izuku was chased down by a familiar terror, though his fear can be washed away by his friends. Just as easily as it comes to him.

Izuku choked on his breath as he began rushing through the crowd, eyes darting around. Again and again, the familiar chill ran up his spine.

 

His mind screamed danger as he tried to get through everyone. He just needed a safe place to hide, just to wait it out.

 

_ Hide, hide, hide! _

 

He ran into the building, pushing past a few students and getting a few yells of annoyance. A few people yelled at him to slow down or watch where he was going.

 

Izuku panted as he looked around, his vision filled strange silhouettes fading in and out. A few small creatures began to seep from the walls, poking out to see what was going on. He noticed some of the figures stared down at some students, others snapped to look at him. 

 

A few merely stared as he ran by, some of them hesitantly followed him. Seemingly curious.

 

_ They’re not after me, they’re not after me. Where are the hostile ones? _

 

He looked around and stopped in his tracks. Which way was he supposed to go again? A right or left? Or had he passed the hall he was supposed to turn down?

 

_ No! You know the layout, you have time. You have time, just calm down. Straight ahead, then turn right. _

 

He tried to swallow down the rising panic, looking around. 

 

_ How can none of you see this? Why me, Why  _ **_me_ ** _? You all saw it that day, but why can’t you see it now?! _

 

He skidded to a stop and made a quick turn, shuddering violently as another wave hit him. He tried his best to keep his face impassive, looking like he was panicking would only make things worse right?

 

He just needed a quiet place, he could surely get this under control. He had to learn, he  _ had _ to. Lest he hurt people as he did before. 

 

He bit his lip as he spotted the infirmary, rushing forward and apologizing as he pushed a few people out of the way. He ran inside and began looking around for his room, mind running too fast to process anything coherently. 

 

_ Stop! Calm down, straight right? Yeah, straight then...left! _

 

He ended up bumping into a nurse who scolded him for running around. Something he meant to apologize for, but couldn’t muster the courage to turn around. He could hear footsteps that weren’t meant to be there, echoing and rattling around in his head. 

 

By the time he had gotten to his room, he was drenched in cold sweat and struggled to keep his shaking to a minimum. He slammed the door shut behind him and placed the case on his bed. Leaning over to try and regain some of his breath. 

 

He groaned to himself and sank to his knees, clenching his eyes shut. 

 

_ How do I stop this? How am I supposed to stop this? _

 

He took a deep breath, trying to find a way to reel it all in. To shove it down deep inside him. 

  
  


Ņ̶̺̦͚̣̳̊͋i̶̟̜̝̱̬͖̽͒̋̈́͋̌͆̓̋c̴̨̰̹̮͔̍̐̆͐̓̕ḙ̵̞̤̯̙̭͠ͅ ̴͎̑̇̆̾̊̐̂͝t̶̨̧̟̺̮̭͇̊́͒̐̑̎o̶̝̱̹̽͠ ̵̖͇̬͙̦̱̈́̂̃͑͌ś̵̰̒̏̒̿ͅe̸̛̛̫͔̻͗̒̍̎̎̾̕ẽ̸͉͖̠͆̽͘ͅ ̸̙͚̯͖y̵̧̨̝̣̋̈̏̈́́̈́̅̎̆o̸͙̐̇̑͂̕u̵̱̙̫̟͛́͝ ̴̢̡̱̻͍̝̙̏̈͐͜a̸̞͂̆͜g̶̖̫͇̯̒͑̃͗̃̚ͅą̵̳̤̭̹̞̘̼̰̔͌͑̈́͂̂̇͒̇į̴̛̖̻̳̥̭̲̈͆̍͗̍̈͝n̵̜̣̻͍̳̠͘.̶̨͈̠̭̙̱̆.̴̧̥̜͔͛͛͋̆.̷̡̢̗͙̞͂̾̾͝͠

  
  


He gasped and scrambled to his feet, looking around to see a familiar figure standing on the other side of the room. An eerie smile plastered onto its face.

 

All Izuku could hear was the strange voice, ringing, and the pounding of his heart. He stumbled back, whimpering as the strange entity began to walk forward. Each footstep echoing loudly in the room.

 

He gasped as his back hit a wall, leaving him with no escape. He only clawed at the wall and felt his heart race faster and faster. 

 

It walked forward, getting closer and closer to him.

  
  


Y̸̢͓̱͓̫͉̝̦͓̦̜̳̼̊̄͝o̷̗͖̳͚̼͎̦̱͛͋͊̍̏̆̋͆̎̚̕͜u̵̩͖̞̩͉̟̐͊́̏͗̈́̋̎ ̷͈̬̑̒̊͂̿̒̕͘͝ç̵̼̪̺̟͔̯̰̹̲͙͎̟̄̑̋̇͆͂̕͜a̴̱̪͂̐̊̎͂͆͘ņ̵̥̟̟̫͚͐͒̑̆͌̍̿̃̓̇͛͌̽͠'̸̲͉̱̱̪̜̳̲̮͙͚͎̼̒͆̆̌̋͘͝͝ṭ̸̡̨̛̤̞̦̋̋̋́̐͐̄̆͆͛̎̆͆ ̷̛̥̠̽̉͑̓̏̒̉͆̅̍̏͝͝r̷̗̥̆͗̇͑͠u̷̱͓̰̹̱̭͍̼͚̜̒̄̋̃̈̒͒͋̈́͋͜͠ͅn̴̪͇̟̆͌̅ ̷̛̛̠̲͚̓̐̾̈́̊̄͂̂̋́̚͘å̸̺͉͔̦̺̱̟͆̅̽̍̾̂̔̈̍͂̚w̶̢̤͌͂̒͌͝a̸̢̩̘̫͐͐̇͑̈̃̅̄͠y̸͓̫̬̖̜̦̍̓͂̌͐̄̉ ̴̱̳͎̫͈͓͓͉̄f̶̢̢̯̱̘̝͋̉͒͜r̴͕̟͇͇̺̘̗̮͕̝̙̠̰͗͌̾̽̿̍̅o̸̡̧̡̼̳̻̗͖̼͓̻͖̱̞͊͂̍͐͌̍̂̒m̵̨͚̤̠̹̗̺͔̜̲̹̟̊̑͒͆͆͊͋̒͐̕͝ ̸͎̞̰̲̹̝͕̻͆͊̒̅͌̐̑̇̽̂̽̊̐͠m̷̧͕͖̱͍̮͎̣̞̱̜̗͐̆̉̒̔̌̆̆̃͠ͅē̷̢͕̺̭̲͍̤̲̫̪̪̳̰̩̓̅̿͜͝ ̶̢̲̰̯̹̲̥͆͂̀̿̈́ͅņ̵̨̻̫̜͍̤͙̭͇̳̳͙͉͆̀̔̎̐̂͘o̷̢̢̖̰̹̓̃̈̄̕͠͝ẅ̸̛̘͉̱̟̟̳̜͖̣̺͉̜̞̟̮̓̃͝. ̸̰̦͖͙͙̼̠̩̒͊. ̷͖̣̮̖͕̲͈̹̄̐̋̋̀̀̈́̊͘͘͝.̵̤͕͍̟̟̘̈́̚

  
  


“S-Shut up..” Izuku whimpered.

 

It’s grin only seemed to widen as it stopped in front of him, towering over the poor boy. It leaned in close to him.

 

“Ŝ̸̩̳͎̑o̷̧̱͓̓͗͠ ̶̔̊͐̌ͅn̶̮̯̞͛̉͆̑ò̸͍͙̑w̶̰̃̉͌͠ ̶̯̺̒y̶͔͇̬͍̑̈́͗o̶̝ủ̶̦̾̐̄ ̸͎̻̿̐c̶̲̣̗̃h̸̳̰̒o̷͖͝ǫ̴̫̱͛s̸̢̓e̷̩̩̦̓̂̓ ̴̨̍͝t̸̲̦͋̄ô̷̯̮̊͆ ̸̫̺̙̌̎a̸̭͆̀͋c̶͙͋k̷̨̘͙̃͜n̵̙̜͇̣͋̾̎ō̵̫̦̲͂w̸̨̬̞̳͌l̷̖͉̤̩̋̍e̶̙͔̲̺̅̏̄d̷̺̞̤̠͂̒̾g̸͈͈̿̈́ë̶͎̭́͜͠ ̵̻̱͛̄͝m̷̘̗̰̑̔̽ͅĕ̷̯̞,̴͎̹̩̕ ̷̺̯͛̔

 

Aḇ̴̕o̶̱͎̅̾u̸̼͍͋͆̈́̚ţ̵̥̜̿̔̑ ̵̧̥͓̽̉̇͜t̴̘͙̐̐i̴̤̪͖͊m̵̩̎͋ě̵̤̠͜. ̷̤͔͔̉̏̄͘. ̵̬̚.̶̹̮̮̑͗

 

He pressed himself against the wall as it reached a hand towards him, fingertips brushing against his face. 

 

He felt a loud yell escape his throat as an electric sensation ran through him. His muscles tensed as he heard the sound of loud cracking all around him. 

 

He struggled to draw in a breath as something warm rattled around in his chest, seeming to spread to the rest of his body. Flowing into his fingertips.

 

“G-Get...Get away from me.” He hissed, cringing as another rush of electricity ran through him. The sound of glass cracking echoing out again.

 

Ÿ̵̛̞̜͕́̓ȏ̵̦̺̞̖ū̴̡̱̜͚̚͘͠ ̷̹̞̓ţ̴̪͔͍̔̈́̓̔h̴̠̗͔̠̍o̶̞̹̒̅̈́ṳ̶̧̱̮̑͘͘g̷͕̭͉̋̆̚ͅh̸̯̦͌̾͋t̵͔̓̍ ̶̰̣͋̃t̵̙̙̻̹̉h̴͔̊a̶̩͚͎̹͛̓̓͝ț̴̆̇̑ ̷̺̟̝̬́l̵̻͉͒̎̅ͅi̴̲̳̹̇̄̿ͅt̴̟͕̓ͅt̷̩̼͙̙̋͝l̸͍͐e̵̺̲̻̍̋̎̑ ̸̨͒͝v̵͚̺͓͖̉̈́ē̸̦̰̣͋i̶̺̪̓̈̂̇l̵̢̜͇̼̋̈́ ̴͈̟̿͌̆w̴̹͖̥̽ó̶̠̙͋̋ǘ̶̦̒ļ̵̜̟͎͂̔d̶̢̜͔̅ ̷̧̿p̴̡̢̟̥̋̎͊͝r̶̟̻͕̩̈o̷̧̲̊͝ṫ̶͔̠e̴̙̒c̷̨̜̝̉̆͜t̷̙̩̙̎ ̸͚̑̔̿͠y̴̭̳̰͂̊̎̐o̸͇͊͂͝ṹ̴̗ͅ ̸̢̣͗̅f̴̹̆̌ő̸̖̩̌̏̆r̸͎̖͝e̸̛̤͖͂̍̔v̴̖̲̟̈́̈̓̄͜ẽ̴͓̩̟̇r̸͔̎?̸̞̉̉

 

“Get away from me.” He raised his voice a bit, teeth chattering.

 

The strange creature only laughed and grabbed his throat, pressing him harder against the wall. Squeezing the air from his lungs. 

 

Y̵̮̬̼̌̍o̴͉u̶̙̇̇̆̆ ̵̢̜̣͔̓c̷̰̪͖̄̑͛͐a̸͕̣͒́͐̒ń̴̮̦̼̎̓̈́ '̷̟͚̭̇̐͆t̴̰̘͊̂̎ͅ ̶̨͍̣̺̇̓̕r̴̞̘̖̘̈́͆̆ū̸̩̠̭͈ṋ̸͓̹̓ͅ ̵̰̖̅̎͐͘ͅa̵̟͚̺̭̎̄w̴̛̞a̷̱̱̝̅̿ỵ̷̘͋̂̌ ̵̣̑̌͋͠f̴͇͋̾̂͝o̴͚̓̀͋̉r̸̟͉̍e̶͙̤͙̣̋͠ṽ̸͚͛ĕ̴̮̝̟̟̊͝͝ṛ̶͂͗

 

“I said get the hell away from me!” He screamed, throwing his hands in front of him. He heard a loud pulsing noise around him as the fingers were torn from his throat. Leaving scratches along his neck.

 

There was a loud crash somewhere in front of him, something that faded as his legs shook violently. He panted and looked up through blurry vision to see the figure on the ground, smiling at him before disappearing. 

 

It took a moment before it finally hit him.

 

He covered his mouth with both hands and sank to the floor, struggling to take deep breaths. He leaned forward and choked out a sob. 

 

He shook his head and sat up straight again the wall, trying to force some air into his lungs. The air seemed to burn his chest.

 

He kept himself pressed against the wall and continued with his painful cycle of short gasps, then the occasional deep breath. All the while he struggled to hold back the hot tears that began to build up.

 

“You’re okay...It’s okay.” He rasped to himself. “You’re okay.” 

 

He wasn’t sure how long he sat there, getting himself under control. He ended up uncovering his mouth after a while, figuring that didn’t help with his breathing. Not to mention he had a few scratches to patch up. 

 

After a while he got back to his feet and shuffled over to some of the knocked over items. Looking around for what he needed. Once he spotted what he needed he knelt down and grabbed it. 

 

Much to his dismay the roll of gauze he needed ended up rolling beneath his bed. He groaned to himself sat down, leaning over to see the spiteful roll of gauze at the far end. 

 

He sighed and reached forward, trying to inch himself under the bed to get to it. 

 

“Come on...come on…” He muttered to himself. He grunted as he managed to get one finger to the gauze. Just as he was sure he was going to be able to get it, it ended up rolling away to the wall.

 

“Argh, come on!” He reached his hand out, and yelped in surprise as something hit his hand. He scrambled to get out from under the bed, bumping his head a couple of times. 

 

He backed up to the small desk and looked at the gauze in his head.

 

_ That wasn’t...was it…? _

 

He looked around before setting the item down. He frowned to himself and held out his hand. 

 

He sighed as he narrowed his eyes, focusing on the gauze. Soon enough he saw a green glow surround the edges of the item. 

 

“Woah…” 

 

He grunted and slowly got to his feet again, moving his hand slightly to get it to rise with him. He ended up raising his other hand and found he had better control. 

 

When he moved one hand a certain way it would tilt in the same direction, same with the other.

 

He tilted his head and began to bring one hand back, making the same motions his mother would whenever she used her own Quirk. He hummed and ended up pausing, looking from his hands to the gauze again.

 

Izuku put on hand behind his back and pulled back hard with the other, smacking himself in the face.

 

“Ow!” 

 

He groaned and rubbed his nose, looking down to see he had dropped the gauze. He sighed and knelt down, grabbing it. 

 

“So that was,  _ is _ my Semblance.” He murmured, looking over the item. 

 

He felt thrilled at first, he had finally managed to manifest it. After watching the others use theirs for so long, he could finally use his own! It brought a bit of excitement to him, momentarily making him forget about the earlier events. 

 

Then…

 

“It’s like mom’s Quirk...” He muttered after a bit, sitting down. “A lot like hers.” 

 

He sighed and lifted the item with his own hand and scooted over to a mirror, looking over the damage that was done to him.

 

“Scratches on my neck aren’t deep, looks like light bruising on my cheek. Good, nothing too bad.” He muttered. 

 

He silently tended to the scratches, hissing in pain every once in a while. It only took a few minutes, he had plenty of first aid experience. 

 

He quickly put all the scattered items away before going to the door.

 

He was supposed to meet Ruby and Weiss right? For that ‘victory dinner’. 

 

Yeah, yeah that’s right.

 

He took one last deep breath before opening the door, and bumping into someone.

 

“Gah! Sorry I…” He looked up and choked on his words, seeing the man Ruby called her uncle.

 

“Oh, saved me the trouble of knocking.” The man muttered.

 

They stood there in silence, one growing increasingly uncomfortable. As the seconds ticked by Izuku couldn’t help but recognize a stench surrounding the man. Something he was a bit too familiar with.

 

“You heading off somewhere kid?” He asked.

 

“J-Just to meet some friends. Listen I’m probably late so…” He trailed off, shuffling around the man. He was about to run off when a hand placed itself on his shoulder.

 

“Hold on, got something for you.” 

 

Izuku would have listed off a number of expletives going through his head if given enough time. He slowly turned around, half expecting to be attacked.

 

Instead the man held out a small device.

 

“Huh?”

 

“Good ‘ol Ozpin asked me to drop this off. Well? You gonna take it or what?”

 

“A-ah! Thank you.” He quickly grabbed the item held out. He looked it over, recognizing it as a scroll.

 

_ Did he catch wind of me not having one? What’s the point of that _ ?

 

Izuku pocketed the scroll and was about to walk away when the man called after him again.

 

“Now hold on, where do you think you’re going?” 

 

Izuku froze in place. “Uh, heading over to see my friends. We’re heading over to dinner?” 

 

“Now is that a question, or are you telling me?” He leaned over him.

 

“Telling you…”

 

Izuku shrank under his gaze, averting his eyes. He wanted to leave. “Uh, listen I should probably g-go. So uh, thanks for the-” As he backed up, he tripped over his own feet. He stumbled back and nearly fell over, only saved by the man who grabbed his vest. 

 

“Hold on, I ain’t done with you yet.”

 

“E-Excuse me?” 

 

Narrowed red eyes met wide green ones. 

 

Izuku gasped and struggled a bit as the man lifted him up, saying nothing at first. He just watched as Izuku struggled and tried to break his grip on him.

 

He only stopped when Qrow spoke up.

 

“Don’t think I don’t know kid.”

 

Izuku froze and looked to the man.

 

“What?”

 

He stayed quiet and set him back down on his feet, still keeping a tight grip on him. What seemed to be a disapproving frown on his face. 

 

“What exactly is your relationship with my nieces?” He asked.

 

“You mean Ruby? And Yang? We’re friends! Just friends, Why?”

 

The man only glared down at him. “Friends...I think I’d rather you-”

 

“Uncle Qrow!”

 

Izuku wheezed in relief and nearly fell back, once again only held up by the man. 

 

Qrow looked up and smiled. “Oh, hey there kiddo. What are you doing here?”

 

“Just came to get Izuku, we’re having victory dinner!” She pumped a fist in the air.

 

“Help me…” Izuku whispered. 

 

“Huh?” She looked over. “Uncle Qrow, could you let him go? Please?”

 

“Sure kiddo.”

 

Izuku fell to the ground with a loud thud. 

 

“What are you doing here anyway?” Ruby asked, helping the dazed boy up from the ground. “And I thought you had to talk to Professor Ozpin.”

 

“Nothing much just had to drop something off for Ozpin. I also wanted to see the kid that caused so much trouble.” He crossed his arms.

 

“Uncle Qrow be nice.” She frowned. “And where did you hear that from?”

 

“I thought we were finally able to move past this…”

 

“Well, news can spread around pretty quick kid.”

 

She hummed and shrugged at that. “I thought people stopped talking about it.”

 

“Considering my luck, no.” Izuku mumbled. “I’ll meet you out in the hall so-”

 

“Nah.” Qrow waved his hand. “Don’t worry about it, I’m taking off. Still got a lot to do, besides Oz isn’t done with me yet.”

 

“You  _ still _ in trouble with Professor Ozpin?” Ruby laughed.

 

Qrow grinned and ruffled her hair. “Ah, I’ll see you later kiddo.” He waved behind him as one last farewell, then left them alone. 

 

After a moment Izuku wheezed and leaned over. “Your uncle is scary…”

 

“No he’s not. He’s Uncle Qrow, he’s super cool!” 

 

“He’s  _ your _ uncle. He’s nice to you.”

 

“I guess.” She shrugged. “Hey, eh said he would be dropping something off. Was that for you?”

 

Izuku stood up and held up his scroll. “Yeah, he gave this to me and-”

 

“Oh! You got a scroll.” Ruby beamed. “Hold on, hold on let me see. I’ll give you everyone’s contact info.” 

 

“Uh, yeah I guess.” He handed her the folded up item to Ruby, watching her open it and begin to type in a few things.

 

“Me...Yang...Blake and Weiss...Pyrrha...Jaune, Ren and Nora! There. You can get Sun’s and Neptune’s later.” She handed the device back to him. “Now come on, we’re probably late.” She ran down the hall. 

 

“Well you’re the one who insisted on looking at my scroll first.” Izuku argued, following after her. 

 

“I was doing you a favor. Now fold it up and pocket it.”

 

“Yeah yeah!”

 

**-.-**

 

_ “ _ Is there any particular reason you two are late?” Weiss crossed her arms as Ruby and Izuku arrived.

 

Izuku panted as he walked over to Pyrrha and Jaune. “Her uncle is scary!”

 

“No he’s not. He’s just a grumpy old man.”

 

“Oh, he met Uncle Qrow.” Yang grinned. “Yeah, he’s just an old man.”

 

“A scary old man!” 

 

“You’re exaggerating.” The sisters looked at him. 

 

“He is.” Izuku argued with grit teeth. 

 

“Hey, what happened to you?” Jaune gave the boy a light tug on his hood to keep him from arguing any further with the girl. 

 

Izuku paused, and looked at Jaune. “Huh?”

 

Jaune pointed to his face and neck as they began walking into the restaurant. 

 

“Oh...this.” Izuku rubbed at his neck. Flinching in pain. “I had a fall on the way back to my room, the bushes weren’t that kind to me this time.”

 

“First firecrackers, and now getting scratched up by bushes.” Pyrrha walked over, shaking her head. “You need to be more careful.”

 

“Yeah, I know…” 

 

The two sighed and ruffled his hair, guiding him to a table for all of them to sit. He sat down between Jaune and Ruby. 

 

“I’m really excited for the doubles rounds, we’re sending in Weiss and Yang. What about your team Jaune?” Ruby looked over.

 

“Pyrrha and I are gonna compete!” Nora cheered.

 

“Nora, sit down.”

 

“Oh, oops.”

 

Izuku smiled to himself as he listened to them talk. Resting his chin on his palm.

 

“That sounds awesome, oh I can’t wait to see that fight!” Yang smiled. “You guys are gonna do great!”

 

“I believe you and Weiss will do amazing as well.” Pyrrha offered a smile.

 

“Yeah, we’re gonna kick some butt!”

 

The conversation went on and on, going from the doubles round, to plans after the festival, to subjects they needed improvement on.

 

Izuku hummed to himself as he began to tune out the conversation. He stared straight ahead and began to lose himself in his thoughts. 

 

He couldn’t help but think back to the events of earlier in the day. It sent chills running up and down his spine. How helpless he felt in that room, before that strange monster.

 

That monster.

 

This was the second time he had seen him in Remnant. The second time he had come after him.

 

He was different from the monsters Izuku used to encounter on a near daily basis. Those monsters couldn’t talk like him, they didn’t seem as  _ aware _ . The ones that wouldn’t hurt him, but just stayed nearby would whisper things. Incoherent, scattered thoughts that made no sense to him.

 

Even the ones that would chase him down seemed to scream something at him. More things he couldn’t understand. 

 

But this thing...was hostile in a way the other monsters weren’t. It was smart, and it wanted something, other than his blood which the others were interested in.

 

Speaking of such, he hadn’t seen so much of the old monsters. Granted he hadn’t had as many episodes as he usually did. If anything he was improving in that regard. But still, the monsters he saw other than  _ that _ one were more docile and quiet. Though they never went near him, even when he ran past them.

 

He frowned to himself, thinking more on the monster. What it had said.

 

_ ‘You can’t run away from me...now you choose to acknowledge me…’ _

 

_ Was that thing around me this entire time? If so, why didn’t it bother me back home? Why didn’t it chase me down there?  _

 

_ ‘You thought that little veil would protect you forever?’ _

 

_ What veil? What is protecting me? My Aura? No, because I was able to use my Semblance a minute later! What does he mean by the veil that’s protecting me? Does it have something to do with my Quirk? This reality? Is that why I didn’t see him back home? _

 

“Izuku?”

 

_ Is there something here that my world didn’t have? Other than...Aura and magic dust and stuff?  _

 

“Izuku?”

 

_ But why now? Why come after me now? What did it want from me? What does it want from me? When it touched me...reality started breaking again. At least it sounded like it did. Why though? Why did it affect me like that? _

 

“Izuku!”

 

“Gah!” He was snapped from his thoughts and sent to the ground.

 

“Woah, Iz you good?” Yang looked over.

 

“Yeah, I’m okay. Just kinda lost myself in my head I guess.” He groaned. The floor felt very comfortable. Like,  _ veeerrryyy _ comfortable.

 

Ah, a shutdown was starting to hit him. Finally.

 

“You wanna get up off the floor.”

 

“Yeah...I probably should huh?”

 

“Yup.”

 

Ruby got up and helped him to his feet, getting him back to his seat while the others gave glances of concern.

 

“You okay? We were trying to get your attention for a while.” Jaune looked over.

 

“I’m fine, I’m fine!” Izuku waved his hands around. “I was just kinda lost in thought for a bit. Don’t worry about me.”

 

“You sure?” Pyrrha frowned. 

 

“Yeah, I promise. I’m good.” He gave a tired smile.

 

The two teams watched him warily. 

 

“Okay then...whatcha thinking about?” Nora leaned forward.

 

“Nothing much, just...stuff.”

 

“What kind of stuff?”

 

“Stuff about...stuff. I’m just thinking about...uh…” He trailed off, trying to think of an excuse. “Home...sort of.” Well it wasn’t a complete lie.

 

“Home?”

 

“What about it?”

 

“Just, kinda curious as to what’s happened while I’ve been gone. Nothing too big.” He shrugged, perking up at bit as a few baskets of bread were placed around the table.

 

“Your home...oh my goodness. Your family must be worried sick about you!” Pyrrha gasped. “You just appeared out of nowhere here in Vale. I can only imagine how worried they are.”

 

Everyone stopped their own little idle chatter, before looking over to Izuku. Who quickly grabbed a bit of bread. 

 

“It’s...It’s no big deal.” He muttered. Why did he have to say home, why couldn’t he have said something else?! “It’s just me and my mom. And my mom...she gives me a lot of freedom.”

 

_ Yeah, sure let’s call it that. Freedom, not neglect. _

 

“Still though, you’ve been here for weeks.” Blake piped up. “Does she even know where you are?”

 

“...No. But it’s no big deal. Really, she’s uh...away at work a lot. So yeah. Hence, the freedom. She’ll be gone. For a long time. Yeah.”

 

_ Excuses, excuses. Lies and more lies. _

 

“What about your dad?” Jaune asked, unconvinced.

 

Izuku froze.

 

“My dad?” He mumbled.

 

“Yeah...unless. Oh, is he…”

 

“No! No, I uh...I don’t know. I never really knew him.” He looked down, rubbing the back of his head. “He kinda left after I was born.”

 

Those around him went a bit quiet. 

 

Izuku frowned and chewed on his bread absentmindedly.

 

Jaune put a hand on his shoulder, gently patting it. He didn’t say anything else. What  _ could _ he say?

 

“Hey guys! Why so quiet, waiting for the party to start?” A new voice piped up, prompting the others to look up.

 

“Sun! Neptune!”

 

“Hey guys. Nice to see ya.” The blue haired one grinned and did the finger gun gesture to them. Izuku was gonna go on a limb and guess he was Neptune, certainly looked the part. Also seemed like someone Weiss would get mad at, if he remembered the events of the aena clearly. 

 

“Oh, cool. A new face.” Sun sat across from Izuku. “I don’t think we’ve met. The name’s Sun, ad this is Neptune. You?”

 

“Uh...no. I don’t think so.” The blond looked somewhat familiar. He had to have seen him from somewhere. It was recent too. 

 

Izuku narrowed his eyes as he looked over Sun. Where had he seen him before? He didn’t watch his fight, he knew that. 

 

“Uh, is he mad at me? Did I say something?” He looked to the others in confusion.

 

“No, you didn’t. Izuku is just kinda off right now.” Ruby shrugged.

 

“Were you lighting firecrackers at night recently?” Izuku asked. 

 

Sun coughed. “Well, I mean no one can really prove it. And who’s to say one just didn’t want to start celebrating early?” He grabbed a cup of water with his tail.

 

Blake stopped her eating and gave him a look. “Sun…”

 

“What? What are you giving me that look for?”

 

“I don’t particularly like being set on fire.” Izuku mumbled. “And you shouldn’t throw firecrackers in the bushes.”

 

Sun stopped drinking his water. “Oh? And one shouldn’t exactly be sneaking around at bushes at night either.”

 

“Okay, he’s kinda got a point there Izuku.”

 

“So it was you!”

 

“What?”

 

“It was you who was setting off those confounding things! People were trying to sleep! It’s already bad enough one of us here has no coordination whatsoever and always knocks things over when he’s running in the dark.”

 

“Hey!”

 

“Easy, we only set off a few.” he nervously chuckled.

 

Izuku held up his hands, and turned his head to the side to show a few singed bits of hair.

 

“Okay, we might have set off more than we meant to.”

 

“We set off the whole pack.” Neptune hummed.

 

“Dude!” 

 

“Inviting these guys was a great idea.” Yang chuckled.

 

Ren sighed to himself. “Certainly an eventful evening.”

 

“It certainly is.” Pyrrha smiled.

 

The loud arguing went on for a while after, even going on through the entree. Turning from the fireworks to small playful jabs at each other. To small bets over the fights for the doubles rounds. 

 

Even then the loud conversation hadn’t died down in the slightest, only escalating if anything. Going further and further, even after they finished eating. 

 

“Hey, keep it up. I bet Team RWBY would kick your butt!” Yang stood up on her chair, placing a foot on the table.

 

“Yeah, you think so?” Nora grinned and stood up herself. 

 

“Guys, come on.” Jaune lightly begged. He had been trying to play pacifist with the group as the conversation went on. Although he too began to get into the fun of it. 

 

“Woah hey now, don’t count Team SSSN out! We could take you guys on just as easily.”

 

“Oh, you wanna bet?”

 

Meanwhile Izuku and Ruby were doubled over, trying not to laugh at the antics. Both had challenged each other to not laugh while the entire thing went on. Ruby had managed to make her own comments every once in a while, more often than Izuku was able to.

 

“G-Guys we’re gonna get kicked out…” Izuku coughed into his fist. 

 

“So, we have our team’s honor to defend!” Sun argued. 

 

“There’s not much of that left after half of you got wiped out today!” 

 

“Hey, that’s a low blow. And hey, we’re not the team with a guy who wore a dress to the dance.”

 

“I made a promise, and I intended on keeping it!”

 

“Actually speaking of that incident. Where  _ did _ you get the dress Jaune?” Ren asked. “Did you just have it on hand or did you buy it shortly after making said promise?”

 

“I feel that is none of your concern.”

 

“If he bought it, how on earth would he have known the proper dress size? Unless he counted on having to in the future…”

 

“I find it best to always be prepared.”

 

Izuku and Ruby pounded their fists on the table, struggling to keep it together. Izuku was wheezing between half breaths and Ruby was gasping, trying not to laugh. 

 

“Yeah yeah. You tell yourself that Jaune. Say do you still have the dress?”

 

“That too, is not your concern.”

 

“He totally does.”

 

“Nora!”

 

The two youngest of the large group were in tears. 

 

There was another loud shout, and the sound of something rattling.

 

The situation had begun to escalate even further, surprising those around them.

 

Soon enough a few items had begun to get tossed around. It started with napkins, then moved onto whatever bread was left. Then utensils and some plates.

 

“Ow, hey watch it!”

 

“You started it.”

 

“No, _ you _ did!”

 

“For the team’s honor!”

 

“You gotta be kidding me!”

 

Izuku ducked and dodged the items that were being thrown, occasionally tossing away his own ammo at whoever assaulted him. Soon enough the area was covered in food or utensils. Most of the people around them, strangers, had left or stood by in awe to watch the rowdy teenagers.

 

Nora dodged small bread roll thrown by Ruby and grinned. “Oh, is that how you wanna play?” 

 

She grabbed a glass of water and threw it towards her. Although her aim was a bit off. 

 

What was supposed to fly towards, and douse Ruby instead went towards Izuku.

 

Izuku had thrown a few bunched up napkins at Sun. He glanced over to see the flying glass, just about to hit him. He yelped and ducked, prompting Ruby to do the same. 

 

Neptune had jumped over the table in an attempt to get the others on the other side. 

 

“Ha! Surprise attack!”

 

He was about to throw something when the glass of water crashed into him. Drenching him.

 

Everyone froze and watched the young man, watching him stand there in shock. 

 

“Uh...oops…”

 

The shocked silence was suddenly cut through with loud laughter coming from one of the two on the floor. Those standing up looked down to see Izuku covering his mouth and trying to rein in his laughter.

 

“I-I’m sorry-it’s just…” He descended into more laughter as Ruby followed shortly, holding her sides and struggling to get up. 

 

Neptune let out a loud scream of horror and ran out of the restaurant, flailing his arms around. Screaming something about water. 

 

“Neptune wait! Just-” Sun chased after him, trying to calm his friend.

 

Everyone began laughing again, trying to collect themselves when someone from the restaurant came up to them.

 

“I’m sorry.” The woman started. “But we’re going to have to ask you to leave. You have caused such a disturbance and-”

 

“We’re sorry! It really got out of hand.”

 

Some of the group began to scoot away, making their way to the entrance.

 

“Clearly, so if you would kindly.” She pointed to the door. 

 

“R-Right, got it ma’am!”

 

Jaune leaned over to Izuku, who was still on the floor. Recovering from his laughing fit.

 

“Izuku, get up we gotta go.”

 

Izuku coughed and gasped for air as he reached a hand up onto the table, Grabbing it weakly. “I-I think I’m dying…”

 

“You’re not dying come on.” Jaune shook his head and helped him up, hurriedly following the others out of the restaurant.

 

Pyrrha looked over to the woman before giving a sheepish smile. “Again, we’re so sorry.”

 

“Please, just get out of my restaurant.”

 

The teenagers quickly left the restaurant and hurried to get off the street, and back to the school.

 

“Oh man Professor Goodwitch is gonna kill us if she finds out.”

 

“So let’s just hope she doesn’t.” They all collectively cringed.

 

“Oh man, it’d be like the cafeteria food fight all over again.” Yang sighed. 

 

“Ah, but that was a fight  _ we _ won.” Ruby said in between her giggles. 

 

“Yes, at the cost of her being upset with all of us.”  Blake looked over.

 

“I just hope Neptune’s okay.” Weiss hummed. 

 

“Aw, I’m sure he is. I mean he managed to fight in the ocean biome. I don’t think a small glass of water will be  _ too _ bad.” Yang shrugged.

 

“He’s afraid of water.”

 

“Oh yeah…”

 

“N-Now I feel really bad for laughing…” Izuku wheezed, coughing a bit. He had begun to settle down. 

 

“I mean, it was kinda funny. He just jumped out at the wrong time…”

 

“Aw man, then we got really out of hand.” Izuku muttered.

 

“Nice to see you joined in on the fun though.” Pyrrha laughed.

 

“I’m an accessory to public disturbance.” He rubbed his eyes. 

 

“You know, I think that’s the first time we’ve ever seen you as happy as you were.” Jaune pointed out. “In fact, I think that’s the first time we’ve even heard you laugh.”

 

“Uh...well…” Izuku rubbed the back of his head, looked down. “I-I mean…” 

 

“You were smiling a lot.” Ruby pointed out.

 

Izuku felt himself turn pink. “Uh, and your point is?”

 

She grinned up at him.

 

“You should smile more. It looks good on you.”

 

Izuku froze in his tracks, his face heating up even more. “R-Ruby you can’t just say stuff like that!” He exclaimed, wrapping his arms around his face. Trying to hide himself.

 

“What do you mean? Why not?” She crossed her arms. 

 

“Y-You just...ngh…” He covered his face. Only growing another shade darker when everyone around him shared a small laugh. 

 

“Don’t know how to take a compliment?” Yang elbowed him lightly.

 

Izuku muttered something unintelligible as he was pulled in one direction to keep him from crashing into something. 

 

“Well?” Yang teased a bit further. 

 

Izuku looked up, his entire face red. He babbled something incomprehensible and waved his hands around before hiding himself again.

 

“Alright I think that’s enough. Leave him alone.” Pyrrha chuckled and pulled him aside. “Go to your room Izuku. We’ll see you in the morning.”

 

“Yeah, see you in the morning.” Jaune smiled. 

 

“Y-Yeah...see you in the morning…” He mumbled.

 

“And please be careful on your way back. Look where you’re going.” Pyrrha sighed.

 

“Y-yeah I know.” 

 

“Night Green Bean!” Nora waved as they walked away.

 

“See you later Iz!”

 

“Night.” He called after. Smiling to himself. He turned around, about to walk off when he heard Ruby speak up again.

 

“See he’s smiling!”

 

“Ruby!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I've got the next two universes picked out for our boiyo. So ye.
> 
> Have a good night/day everybody!


	10. Training

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yang brings Izuku out for training, it could've gone better.
> 
> Much better

Izuku yawned as he rubbed at his eyes, dragging the case that held his weapon behind him. It was an early morning, it had to be at least 5:30.

 

He had deep bags beneath his eyes, and admittedly was a bit pale.

 

“Come on Iz, we’re almost there.” A cheery voice called ahead.

 

He groaned and trudged onwards, still struggling to wake himself up. He hadn’t gotten to sleep off the rest of his shut down, same as last time. Except this time he was dragged out of bed more or less. 

 

“Come on, we’ll do a short session and then I’ll get you coffee. Promise.” the blond turned around and smiled at him.

 

“Why can’t we get coffee now?” Izuku mumbled. “And why are you dragging me out here?” 

 

“If we get coffee now you might get sick later. Besides, the doubles fight isn’t until tomorrow so we can go for a little while.”

 

“Uh huh, sure.”

 

Yang had scared the daylights out of him when the door to his room slammed open. To him, slamming doors meant only two things. Someone was mad, or someone had found him. He nearly went into panic mode before he saw Yang who was trying to get him to settle down before he woke the whole hall up.

 

He had little time to dwell on her telling him to get changed and leaving before he suddenly bumped into her.

 

“Alright, cool we’re here.” Yang put her hands on her hips and grinned. 

 

Izuku looked around the area, finding it to be a small training area. Wide, open spaces fenced in with plenty of trees and bushes. 

 

“Alright, so put the case down. We’re gonna start with a few stretches before we really get into it.”

 

Izuku nodded absentmindedly and placed the case down and mimicked the stretches she started to do. Minding to keep a small distance.

 

“So, why are we here? Early in the morning?” Izuku asked.

 

“Well, Ruby told us about your weapons. Figured I may as well start helping you out, since our weapons seem similar.”

 

Izuku looked up. “Ruby told you?”

 

Yang nodded. “Yeah, our two team JNPR and RWBY kinda keep each other in the loop. She only really told us, I don’t think Pyrrha and the others know yet.” 

 

“Do you guys usually share everything about each other?” Izuku raised an eyebrow.

 

“Yup, like we kinda told them about how Blake is a Faunus. Just to give a heads up, and get them to understand the situation at the time.”

 

“Blake’s a Faunus?” Izuku looked up. Faunus, that’s right Ozpin told him about Faunuses. They were basically humans with animal traits. And for that reason, they were seen as lesser humans for some reason. Humans and Faunus didn’t get along very well, if the White Fang was anything to go by.

 

“Yeah, she’s a cat. She has little cat ears she hides with her bow. Sun is one too, you saw his tail.” She smiled.

 

“Yeah, I did. There aren’t many Faunus around here are there?”

 

“Well, not really. The only other Faunus we know about is Velvet, who you haven’t met yet. Or her team, CFVY.”

 

Izuku hummed. “Do I wanna meet them?” He asked.

 

“Yeah! They’re pretty neat, they’re also third years. So there’s that too.”

 

Izuku shrugged, unsure what to do with that information. 

 

“Alright, that’s good. Come on, pull out your weapon. We’ll start with a few basics.”

 

Yang nodded at him and began to equip her Ember Celicas. Humming to herself as she checked over them.

 

Izuku sighed and knelt down, opening the case and looking over the weapons he designed. He pulled out the items and began putting them around arms. 

 

They were like Yang’s in a way. The main part went from his wrist to below his elbow. Something that appeared to be light-weight armor. A bit of metal stretched over his hand to his knuckles, which seemed a tad bit thinner. He looked over the green and white weapons, seeing a blue line had been painted along the sides. 

 

“Wow, Ruby wasn’t kidding. Ours are kinda similar.”

 

Izuku looked over to her, glancing at her Celicas and his unnamed weapon.

 

“Well, not exactly.” He muttered. “Yours are capable of long rang fighting, you can shoot bullets as you please. Not to mention, that you create a lot of force with your punches on your own.” Izuku held his up. “Well, mine has a small chamber right here.” He pointed at the area near his elbow. 

 

“You see, I pull my arm back…” He did so. “And release.” He threw a punch, a rush of air coming from the chamber. “I know my punches are pretty weak, so with this it speeds it up and adds a bit more power until I can do it well on my own.”

 

Yang raised an eyebrow. “Huh, and what’s that supposed to be about?” She pointed at his wrist.

 

“O-Oh, uh well. You know how yours are capable of long range, the whole shooting bullets. Well, mine are sort of the same. Except it’s for more close range, you see the bullets I would use are more uh...kind of explosion oriented.”

 

_As much as I hate to admit it, they’re based off of someone_ **_else_ ** _I know._

 

She crossed her arms. “How so?”

 

“Uh well, here let me…” He took a few steps back, putting two fingers around the hidden trigger, brushing up against the other trigger. He pulled his arm back, and struck forward, pressed the trigger and a small explosion was let out. He quickly drew his arm back from the small cluster of smoke and fire. “Technically I think it would work better with dust bullets rather than regular ones. Granted ice and fire might be better except…” He trailed off into one of his muttering rants, shuddering every once in a while.

 

“Okay, don’t worry I got it. And you seem to be able to handle that pretty well. Maybe once you get a bit stronger you can redesign it for long range use. Now, one more thing I notice in your arsenal that you have yet to put on.” Yang pointed at the case. “What is that supposed to be?”

 

Izuku looked over and hummed. He grabbed the item and held it up. 

 

“Uh, you know how getting punched in the face sucks?”

 

“You serious? Iz you have an Aura.”

 

“Hey, that’s not it's only use! It’s able to filter out toxic gasses or at least I hope so... w-which I’m sure there are plenty of out there. Not just from Grimm, but maybe people’s Semblances…”

 

“Well alright then. Go ahead and put it on, then we can get started.”

 

Izuku nodded and put on the mask like item. It was a gray, metal guard that covered the lower half of his face. Clearly made of metal. Even with it on, his freckles could still be seen.

 

“There.” His voice was a bit muffled.

 

She nodded. “Alright.” She walked towards him. “Basic things.” She threw her fist forward, stopping right at his abdomen. 

 

Izuku flinched and nearly fell over in surprise. 

 

“Right here, hitting someone in the diaphragm is good. Knocks the wind out of them and makes their lungs spasm if you do it right.” She lowered her fist a bit. “Kidney punches also hurt a bunch.”

 

Izuku nodded to himself, knowing damn well how much they hurt. Those areas seemed to throb in pain with the memory of the beatings.

 

Yang turned around, humming before whirling around and throwing another punch, this time aiming at his face.

 

This time Izuku acted on instinct and ducked down, using his arms to hide himself. 

 

Yang looked down and smiled. “Easy, I wasn’t actually gonna hit you. But good reflexes. Anyway, hitting the jaw is good. It’s a knockout button if you hit it hard enough.

 

 _Oh I know of that very, very well_.

 

Izuku slowly stood up as Yang lowered her fist. 

 

“So, quick question before we start.” She looked over at him. “You ever been in a fight before?”

 

Izuku gave her a look. “I’m pretty sure if you guys share everything, you should know that by now.”

 

Yang watched him for a moment before sighing and nodding. “Alright.” She turned and walked away a bit, giving him a little bit of space.

 

Izuku sighed and rubbed his eyes.

 

_This is fine._

 

He watched her put a bit of distance between them as he tried to focus himself.

 

_She’s Yang, she’s not Katsuki. She’s not gonna beat you senseless. You’ll be fine, this is training. This is training. She is not Katsuki, she is Yang. This is Yang._

 

He took a deep breath and looked up, he barely had time to process the sounds of a shot going off before he saw Yang charging towards him.

 

He yelped and jumped to the side, barely avoiding her fist as she landed right next to him. She quickly whirled around and began throwing punches at him. Alternating between a few different targets on him. 

 

Izuku couldn’t help but panic, stuck between dodging or staying still and taking the hits like usual. He did both in a way, dodging one but getting struck with another hit and freezing for a moment. Then taking another hit and going back to trying to avoid the punches. 

 

He could at least be thankful that the hits weren’t as intense as they usually felt. He supposed he had his Aura to thank for that. 

 

It wasn’t long before she landed a solid hit to his gut and caused him to double over. He couldn’t move as he took another hit and was sent to the ground. 

 

He groaned as he rolled over onto his side and pushed himself up. 

 

“Hey.” He looked up to see her stretching out a hand.

 

He took a deep breath and nodded, pulling himself to his feet with her help. He said nothing as he rested his hands on his knees and caught his breath, the pain from the punches beginning to somewhat fade.

 

“I thought you said you’ve been in a fight before.” She crossed her arms and looked down at him.

 

“N-Never...Never said it...hold on.” He sighed between breaths, giving himself a minute before standing up straight. “I never said it was a _fair_ fight.”

 

“...Oh. Well, you seem to have a pretty good idea on how to _avoid_ getting hit when you don’t freeze up. Another thing.” She grabbed his wrists and positioned them into a proper guard, then used her foot to space his feet for proper stance. “Guard your face. Not like how to crossed your arms earlier, but like this. You always guard you face, even when dodging. You don’t know if someone else has the speed to suddenly whirl around and get you if you manage to dodge the first hit.”

 

“Ah…”

 

“Alrighty, let’s go again. Don’t freeze up, keep your guard up, and remember this is training. It’s alright to get knocked down.”

 

Izuku nodded and walked in the opposite direction she headed towards.

 

_Dodge, always dodge. You won’t be punished for avoiding the hits, not this time. Play defensively until you can find a way to land a good hit on her._

 

He went over the reminders in his mind as he readied himself. This time getting into the right stance.

 

_Part your feet, bend your knees slightly. Arms up._

 

Once again Yang didn’t give a warning when she suddenly shot towards him. Once again he dodged to the side, but she seemed to anticipate this this time. She fired off another shot that angled her in the direction he dodged towards and she landed a hit.

 

He grunted and backed up, watching her raise her fists as she grinned. “Don’t expect your enemy to not learn from you.”

 

With that she charged forward again, this time Izuku ducked and jumped forward to get behind her. He quickly put a bit more distance between them before she could strike again. Which was a good move on his part, as a bullet struck where he had been moments ago. He jumped at the noise and looked at the ground, gulping a bit.

 

He and Yang shared a look before she rushed forward again, giving him a barrage of punches. Brute force, that was how she was going to win this fight.

 

Izuku continued to dodge, still taking a few hits here and there; but retaliating a few times with hits of his own where he seemed to be stunned. They mostly missed, but gave him a small window to move back and give them more space. 

 

This went on for a while longer, dodging, punching, missing, then getting hit. At least he had lasted longer this time around. He had gotten a bit too excited when he had managed to get behind her again, rushing forward and throwing his own punch. 

 

This time she sidestepped, surprising him. She took advantage of his surprise and kicked out at one of his legs, sending him to the ground once again.

 

He panted and sat up, wiping some sweat off his brow. He looked up to see a hand extended out to him.

 

“You did better this time around, didn’t freeze up as much. You’re good at avoiding attacks most of the time, but you can’t stay on the defensive all the time. Especially if you’re fighting hand to hand. You’re gonna have to come out of your comfort zone eventually.” She pulled him to his feet and continued as he caught his breath, 

 

“Tell ya what, I’ll go a _little_ easier on you this time.” 

 

“Sure you will.” Izuku muttered, standing up once again.

 

She patted his shoulder and smiled. “I will, but I’m not going to be a little pushover.” She turned around and began walking away.

 

Izuku nodded to himself and began walking in the other direction, looking over his weapon. He hummed to himself as his fiddled with the second trigger. He had one more hidden surprise he hadn’t told her about. If anything, that might just give him the edge he needed.

 

He sighed and turned around, steeling himself for the fight. He got into his stance and looked up, seeing Yang staying still for a moment. He swallowed hard and stared at her, waiting for the first shot to go off. 

 

Much to his surprise she didn’t launch herself into the air, instead choosing to sprint towards him. She was still fast, and came up quickly.

 

Once again Izuku chose to stay on the defensive. Stumbling back and choosing to avoid the punches, occasionally bringing up an to let the weapon take the hit. 

 

_She doesn’t leave any noticeable openings..._

 

He jumped back and dodged another punch, he could see a bit of frustration starting to form on Yang’s face. She wasn’t landing as many hits as she wanted to. 

 

Izuku ducked and blocked another punch that nearly sent him to ground. Izuku grunted as he rolled away, quickly getting to his feet again. 

 

_There has to be an opening somewhere, if I dodge again and try to hit that might not go over well…_

 

He swallowed hard and grit his teeth. A memory replaying in his mind.

 

The one time he tried to defend himself, the one time he dared to fight back. He screamed at his former friend to stop, to leave him be.

 

He had been beaten within an inch of his life.

 

For a moment he forgot where he was, and was forced back into the present with solid hit to his jaw, even _with_ the guard it hurt like hell. He yelled in surprise and fell to the ground. He groaned and got to his hands and knees, struggling to get up. 

 

He tried his best to blink away the stars in his vision as he looked up, seeing Yang approaching him. He wasn’t quite down yet, so the fight was still going.

 

Of course.

 

He looked down, feeling some dirt beneath his hands. He shook his head and looked up, seeing Yang beginning to rush towards him. He grunted and stood up, putting one arm up and keeping the other at his side. 

 

“You still going? Good.” Yang shouted as she sent off a shot and rushed forward. 

 

Izuku waited until she was close enough before throwing his arm forward and giving her a faceful of dirt.

 

“Argh! Hey, that’s not-” 

 

Izuku didn’t give her the chance to finish her sentence, rushing forward and pulling his arm back. 

 

Yang grunted as she rubbed some of the dirt from her eyes, looking up to see Izuku right in front of her. She quickly stepped to the side as he threw his punch. 

 

She thought she had avoided the hit until a loud click was heard and a small blade unfolded itself from the outer part of his weapon. She grunted as she heard a crackle and hurriedly jumped back as he landed and steadied himself.

 

She put a hand to her cheek, feeling her Aura shimmering a bit. He had finally been able to cut into it. She eyed the small blade, watching it fold back into its compartment with another click. 

 

She crossed her arms and grinned. “That was a little underhanded Iz, but I gotta admit that was...pretty…” She trailed off as she saw a few strands of blonde hair fall to the ground.

 

Izuku watched in horror as Yang watched the hair fall. He remembered the first time he saw her fight. Someone touched her hair, and a body went flying. 

 

Before he could get a chance to apologize, he saw her burst into yellow flames and look up at him. He felt himself panic as red eyes glared down at him.

 

“You, cut my hair.” She said every word slowly, walking forward as she spoke. 

 

Izuku gulped and began backing up. Part of him wanted to run, the other part knew that if he ran he’d get it even worse later on if he was found. Wait, no not if- _when_.

 

Yang screamed as she flew towards him, flames trailing after her. The heat around her rising higher and higher.

 

Izuku panicked, putting his head down and throwing his arms out in front of him in a feeble attempt to protect himself. 

 

Just as a fist brushed against his face it suddenly disappeared. He looked up after hearing a cry of alarm as Yang went flying away from him and onto the ground with a hard thud. He watched her from where he stood, seeing a green aura outlining her form. 

 

He quickly put his hands down and brought them up to his mouth, seeing the aura fade. She slowly got up, rubbing her head and looking around confused before her gaze landed on him again.

 

Oh, now she was _really_ gonna kill him.

 

Yang opened her mouth to speak and stepped forward, but before she could get a word out Izuku bolted into the greenery.

 

“Izuku wait!” She called after him, getting no response save for rustling bushes. She sighed to herself. “Great.”

 

Without much other thought she ran forward after him. He couldn’t have gone far, he was probably tired. Not to mention his panic would surely cause him to trip over something.

 

“Izuku? Izuku where are you?” She called after him again and again, checking through bushes, looking up trees. She sighed to herself as she kept moving around. There were only so many spaces he could hide before hitting another small training area.

 

“Izuku please come out, I didn’t mean to scare you.” She kept jogging around, only seeing small broken twigs here and there. A small, unintentional path.

 

“Oh man, the others are gonna kill me…” Yang muttered as she continued her search. She looked ahead to see through the greenery to see the next training area ahead. She hummed and ran forward, seeing a familiar group.

 

“Hey!” She called, running out of the bushes to greet Team CFVY. 

 

“Oh, hey Yang. It’s been a while since we’ve seen you around. What are you doing around here this early?” Coco lowered her sunglasses a bit to look at the first year student.

 

“I brought a friend over for training, and he ran off. You haven’t seen him around have you? Kind of short, wild green hair, and freckles. Wearing a face guard? Maybe looked a little scared?”

 

The team looked at each other before looking back at Yang.

 

“No, we haven’t seen anyone run through here.” Velvet started. “But, I’m pretty sure I heard some rustling from over there not too long ago.” She pointed towards a spot of greenery.

 

Yang sighed and nodded. “Alright, thanks. I’ll see you guys later.” She turned and began to run in the direction Velvet pointed. 

 

Once again Yang was left wandering around trees and bushes, looking for a head of green hair. Which was like trying to find a needle in a haystack. 

 

“Of course you’d hide around here Iz, you blend in perfectly…” She kept walking around, pushing aside leaves and branches in an attempt to uncover whatever hiding space he found.

 

After a while Yang pulled out her scroll and flipped through a few things. She eventually landed on the group chat with Team RWBY and JNPR. It was still idle, which was normal considering the time.

 

She actually considered sending over a text that she lost Izuku. No doubt, as soon as Pyrrha and Jaune saw they’d be looking all over for him. Not to mention she’d probably get chewed out by all of them.

 

She looked over a few other things, spotting an unnamed number a few scrolls down. 

 

 _That’s right, she gave me his contact information…_  

 

She looked around again.

 

“Well it’s worth a shot.” She muttered, pressing a button and letting it ring for a bit.

 

She didn’t have to wait long before a loud beeping was heard, and a surprised yelp. She began walking over as she heard panicked mumbling trying to shut off the source of noise. 

 

The beeping finally stopped after a moment, but Yang had already found him. She slowly came up to where she heard the noise, and pushed aside a few branches.

 

There on the ground, was Izuku. Hiding himself with his arms, shaking like a leaf. 

 

He could only flinch as Yang held out hand.

 

“Hey, it’s okay.” She kneeled down. “How about we call it a day, and get something to eat. How does that sound?”

 

**-.-**

 

The two sat beside each other in silence, one shying away from the other.

 

Yang had gotten him to get up after a while, and got him to take off his weapons lest he accidentally set them off.

 

Izuku could barely hold his cup, his hands were shaking terribly. Some coffee had already spilled out. He kept his head down, eyes looking from one spot to another. He was trying to focus himself.

 

Yang eyed him as he took a shaky sip of the beverage. 

 

“Hey.” 

 

He jumped and looked up at her. 

 

“I...I didn’t mean to scare you. I’m sorry.” She watched him.

 

“It’s fine.” He mumbled.

 

“Izuku, I mean it. I didn’t mean to-”

 

“It’s f-fine!” He raised his voice a bit, getting a few looks from a few people passing by. “It’s not…” He took a deep breath. “Not your f-fault…” He stammered, swallowing hard. “It’s not...you, I’m…” He lowered his head and took one deep breath after another. She could see a few tears beginning to build up.

 

Yang sighed and took a sip of her own drink. “Does it have anything to do with those unfair fights? And Katsuki?”

 

Izuku opened his mouth, then closed it. He pressed them together and turned his head away before nodding.

 

“What did he do to you?” 

 

Izuku was silent, staring down at his drink.

 

“Iz?”

 

Izuku sighed and put his cup down, holding out his arms before rolling up his sleeves. “You’ve seen them. C-Clearly I’m bad at hiding them…”

 

Yang stared down at the sunburst like scars, yeah she had seen them. She never really mentioned them, or tried not to. Even though the others noticed. Ruby had implied someone hurt him.

 

“He-”

 

Izuku quickly drew his arms back and pulling down his sleeves again. “Yes.” He cut her off. “His Q-Semblance, he can make explosions from his hands and...well he used that to his advantage. Clearly.”

 

“What about your Aura? Why didn’t that protect you? And why didn’t you tell anyone, I’m sure someone would have-”

 

“Because I didn’t have one Yang!” He looked at her, tears brimming. Frustration written all over his features. “I didn’t have an Aura, or a Semblance to help me. Why do you think he would beat me up in the first place?” 

 

Yang was silent.

 

“I had no way to to-to defend myself. I just had nothing...I _was_ nothing.”

 

Yang looked him up and down, noting how he wrapped his arms around himself, how he hunched over; trying to make himself smaller. She slowly reached a hand up to rest on his shoulder. He jolted and slapped her hand off.

 

Okay, he wasn’t ready to be touched yet. That was okay.

 

“...You...kind of remind me of him…” He murmured after a bit.

 

Yang froze, and looked down at him. “What?”

 

“You...remind me of him.”

 

She stared at him for a bit before looking ahead. “Is that why you don’t like to stand too close to me? Oh don’t give me that look, it’s kind of hard to not notice. Whenever I start inching closer, you tend to shuffle away.”

 

“Ah.”

 

She stayed quiet for a minute before starting up again.

 

“How?”

 

“Hm?”

 

“How do I remind you of him?” 

 

“...Well I mean. You two are blonde. When you get your red eyes and just e-explode with your temper…” He looked down. It felt stupid, he knew she wasn’t Katsuki. He _knew_ that. So why did she scare him nonetheless? “He rushes into battle, you do the same. Especially again, your temper you two just obliterate whatever is in front of you.”

 

Yang frowned. That seemed like so little to draw parallels between that creep and her. How did he see it?

 

“But…” He paused. “You...don’t try to kill me everytime you see me. You tolerate me a lot more than he does. You’re a lot nicer too, compared to him.” 

 

Yang looked at him for a bit. “Iz, I don’t tolerate you. You’re my friend, at least I consider you one. Not too sure if you even see me as one…” She shook her head. “And if he did all this to you, why didn’t you tell someone, I’m sure someone would have done something to help you.”

 

She wasn’t expecting him to slowly look over with an upset look.

 

“You say your mom is away a lot, but I’m sure she would have done something.” She said, holding out for a little bit of hope. Surely he would have someone, _anyone_ in his corner. There had to be.

 

She got her answer when his frown deepened.

 

“You can’t be serious.”

 

“...”

 

“Izuku…”

 

He said nothing, taking another sip of his coffee. Which was already cold. After taking a long sip, seeming to mull over his words.

 

“I had to learn.” He muttered.

 

“What?”

 

“I had to learn...the hard way.”

 

Yang stared at him for a moment, the implications of that weighing down heavy on her. She felt herself clench her fists. “And what exactly does that mean?”

 

“I had to learn the hard way not to...well do anything. When I was younger, I would try to tell someone what h-happened to me.” He looked at her. “I had to learn...because the adults wouldn’t do anything, and if anyone tried to befriend me; or side with me. Well they had to learn the hard way too. After all, why ruin the future of someone with plenty of potential, to benefit someone with none?”

 

Yang gaped at him.

 

“The first time, he just got a slap on the wrist. Even then it pissed him off. So after school he and his lackeys dragged me behind the school and...well I’m sure you can put two and two together.”

 

Yang stared at him, gritting her teeth.

 

“Did you ever try to fight back? Would that have made him back down?”

 

“The last time I tried to fight back he beat me within an inch of my life and threw me in a janitor’s closet for a whole day. When I got out, I went to go home. He called after me and I ran, and if I ran or avoided his hits he would make sure that the next time he caught me I would be punished. He made sure of that.”

 

Yang watched him, as he spoke he had made himself smaller if possible. Bringing his knees to his chest and wrapping his arms around them. 

 

Suddenly, a lot started to make sense.

 

“I retaliate. I get hurt much worse than what he’d usually do to me. And anyone that tried to help me got hurt too, and he’d make sure I knew that was my fault too. I grew up mostly alone...”

 

“I’m pretty much ready to kill this Katsuki guy Iz.”

 

“He’s n-not all that bad.” Izuku argued, his voice feeble. “We used to be friends when we were kids. He’s usually...he can be…” He bit his lip and looked around. There was something good he could say about Katsuki right? There had to be...right? 

 

“It doesn’t sound like he has many redeeming qualities.”

 

Izuku frowned and racked his brain. Trying to think of something. There was something good about Katsuki, there _had_ to be. Deep down he still believed that right? 

 

He looked at his hand, noting the shaking.

 

Did he?

 

“Iz?”

 

“It’s hard to...say…”

 

Yang shook her head and stood up. 

 

“Izuku, all that is...it isn’t okay. And the fact you’re still trying to defend him to some degree just isn’t okay!”

 

“I’m not saying it is…” He looked up at her. 

 

“It sure sounds like it.” She crossed her arms, one hand clenched into a fist. “So, how exactly did you end up here? Because I’m starting to doubt it was _just_ your Semblance going haywire.”

 

Izuku stared at her, a haunted look in his eyes.

 

That wasn’t something he was ready to say yet, not to her. Not to any of them.

 

He wasn’t really sure he’d _ever_ be able to tell them.

 

After all, how do you tell the people you call your friends you tried to kill yourself? What would they think of him then? It’s bad enough Yang probably thinks he’s weak now. How he let all this happened to himself, if she told the others what would they think?

 

Would they push him away like Katsuki did, after realizing how worthless he was-is!? Weak, little to no control over his power. Unable to even stand against one of them? Breaking down in a fight. He was useless, absolutely useless.

 

_Good for nothing!_

 

_Quirkless wannabe!_

 

_Useless Deku! Just like you you’ve always been, and always will!_

 

“Izuku!”

 

He was forced from his thoughts as hands grasped his shoulders. He flinched away from them at first, before forcing himself to calm down. He hadn’t even registered the hot tears running down his face.

 

“What would you be doing if you were still in that place?”

 

Izuku didn’t look at her. 

 

_I’d be dead…_

 

“I don’t know.” 

 

Yang stared at him before sighing. “You know, it might be best that you ended up here.”

 

_How so?_

 

It was as if she sensed his question.

 

“You were-Izuku look at me.”

 

He didn’t listen to her at first.

 

“Izuku.” She said firmly, a pang of guilt hit her as he winced. This time he listened, and looked up to her. 

 

“You were in a bad place, and you ended up here. You know, maybe that’s for the better too. You can’t heal in the same place that hurt you.”

 

Izuku drew his lips into a thin line.

 

“I have a feeling you haven’t told all of us...everything. But that’s okay. We’re your friends, and I’m pretty sure you consider us friends. At least I hope you do. We’ve all got our problems Iz, our own troubles. Doesn’t mean we have to deal with them alone, in a way you’re part of our team.”

 

He stared at her for a bit, unsure what to say.

 

She grinned at him, until her scroll started to go off. She looked down and stepped away, pulling it out and answering the call.

 

“Hello?” She answered. “Oh, hey. Well, good morning to you too.”

 

Izuku sighed and got to his feet, stirring his cold coffee before throwing it away. 

 

“Yeah don’t worry I have him, yeah we got some coffee. It’s cold now though so yeah. I guess we could head over.”

 

Izuku looked up at that and looked off to the side. Rubbing at his eyes to dry them.

 

_I’ve always been a crybaby haven’t I?_

 

“Cool, then we’ll head over to the festival grounds and see what’s new right? Neat! Yup, alright just be sure to save some for me.” She nodded a bit before saying goodbye to who was on the other end.

 

She glanced over to the boy who began gathering his things. He looked exhausted.

 

“Hey, come on. Let’s go get some real food, besides Jaune and Pyrrha aren’t exactly too happy with me ‘kidnapping’ you again.” She used air quotes.

 

He hummed in response and began to walk towards the cafeteria.

 

“You feeling any better?” She asked.

 

“Yeah, I guess so.” He nodded.

 

“Then why are you crying again?”

 

“Huh?” He looked at her before rubbing at his eyes again. “You gotta be kidding me…” 

 

“It’s fine, we can walk slow.” She slowed her pace a bit.

 

Izuku shook his head and rubbed his eyes vigorously, feeling no end to the tears. “It’s fine. J-Just let me get my sh...stuff together.”

 

Yang watched him warily. “Do you know why you’re crying?”

 

“No!” He swallowed hard, gripping the hem of his shirt. He wasn’t sure what it was. His chest felt so light, yet so heavy at the same time. He felt some kind of relief, but a strange instinctive fear.

 

She sighed and petted the shorter boy’s head, still getting a wince but at least her hand wasn’t slapped away.

 

He would get there, he’d be able to trust all of them in the way he deserved to. Without fear.

 

She’d make sure of it.

 


	11. Sunset

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A day that had started off bad and gotten better right at the end.
> 
> It was nice while it lasted

“So, who do you think you and Nora are gonna go up against?” Jaune asked Pyrrha as he skimmed through his comic.

 

“I’m not sure, but I’m confident in our abilities.” She smiled at him. Fingers tracing over the cover of the book she had in hand. 

 

“You should invest in some lighting dust bullets, just in case.” A tired voice murmured.

 

“Oh, look who’s awake.” 

 

Izuku groaned as he lifted his head, a small imprint on his cheek. “How long have I been out?” He rubbed his eyes.

 

“Just a little while, it’s only after noon.” Pyrrha answered, pushing aside the book Izuku had rested his head on.

 

“Oh…” He laid his head back down.

 

“Izuku!”

 

“Wake me up when it’s morning again.”

 

“How about instead you tell us about why Pyrrha should get lightning dust bullets instead?” Jaune lightly poked at his head. 

 

Izuku sighed and sat up, looking around the quiet library. He looked confused for a moment before he remembered how he got there.

 

After he and Yang had made it back to the cafeteria he had sat down and eaten some toast. Maybe a bit of fruit. After that, he just passed out while the others held their own discussions. He was half asleep for most of the event, he could hear them saying stuff about the fairgrounds and what they wanted to get up to.

 

After breakfast ended Jaune and Pyrrha woke him up and ended up bringing him to the quiet library where he fell asleep all over again. 

 

He couldn’t really say what they were talking about while he was asleep. 

 

“Hey, Izuku.” Jaune lightly shook him.

 

“H-Huh?”

 

“Did you hear me?”

 

“Oh, yeah. Well, the bullets are a fall back plan in a way. A last resort.”

 

“How so?”

 

“Well, Nora can take electricity well right? She also happens to be your heavy hitter, and the dust bullets would give her a boost. Again, it’s a fallback plan if you find yourself driven into a corner, Nora gets a boost, and she can use brute force. Like in the first round.”

 

“I see.” Pyrrha nodded.

 

Izuku nodded, staying quiet for a moment before blinking. “I-I’m not saying that you’ll need it! I-I’m just saying it's just in case something happens! You know since it doesn’t hurt to have a plan B if something happens!”

 

His rambles were stopped as Pyrrha placed a hand on his head.

 

“I understand, don’t worry.” She smiled. “That sounds like a good idea, although I’m not sure I’d be able to get dust bullets in such a short time.”

 

Izuku sighed and nodded, leaning back in his seat. 

 

“You feeling any better?” Jaune asked.

 

Izuku shrugged. “A bit.” He admitted. “Still kinda tired, but not as much as before.”

 

Pyrrha hummed. “Well, do you feel up to heading to the fairgrounds?”

 

He looked to the side. “Uh...well…”

 

“Be honest.” 

 

“Not...really…” He rubbed the back of his head. “But if you guys wanna go that’s okay, I might head to my room and get some more rest.”

 

“If you do that you’re gonna mess up your sleep schedule, you won’t get any sleep tonight.” Jaune raised an eyebrow.

 

“Bold of you to assume I have a good sleep schedule in the first place.” 

 

“Izuku…”

 

“I don’t!” 

They sighed and went quiet for a bit, pausing to let themselves relax for a moment. 

 

“So, I heard this morning sparring didn’t go too well. Are you okay?” Jaune placed a hand on his shoulder.

 

Izuku shuddered and looked to the side. “Should I assume Yang already told you about...everything?”

 

“Uh, no not quite.”

 

“I thought you guys kept each other in the loop.” He looked up.

 

“We do, but she hasn’t really told us anything yet.”

 

Izuku grunted and laid his head down. Alright then, he had some time before they knew. Before they figured how useless he really was. How he was nothing but a scared kid who couldn’t even make it through a sparring session without breaking down. 

 

He was weak, and he always would be.

 

And when they figured that out they’d leave him, figuring he was a lost cause. That it was best to just leave him behind and forget about him. Why waste time on him, and let him drag them all down?

 

“Hey!”

 

His head snapped up to see Pyrrha and Jaune looking over him with concern.

 

“Izuku is everything okay?” 

 

“Y-Yeah! I’m fine, why wouldn’t I be?” He asked, fiddling with his hands.

 

“Because you’re shaking.” Pyrrha frowned.

 

“N-No I’m...not…” He held up his hand to prove a point, frowning when he saw himself trembling. “Oh…”

 

“Do…” Jaune looked at Pyrrha before looking back at him. “Do you wanna talk about it?” He asked

 

“Not really…” Izuku mumbled.

 

Pyrrha watched him for a moment before standing up. “Well, how about this then. Instead of just sitting around, let’s continue your training. Shall we?” She smiled at him.

 

“Please no, I don’t think I can handle much more today.” He held his jaw where he took the heavy hit. He quickly felt at his face guard, surprised there wasn’t a dent in it.

 

“It’s not combat training.”

 

“Oh no…” Jaune groaned.

 

“I know it’s frustrating Jaune, but at least you won’t be the only one training with your Aura.”

 

“Aura training?” Izuku raised an eyebrow.

 

Pyrrha nodded. “Yes, Aura training. I feel this will benefit you just as much as Jaune. You strengthen your Aura, allowing it to be able to take more damage and protect you longer. Although, a more practical form of it is trying to use it more efficiently. It can even aid in the discovery of your Semblance.”

 

Jaune huffed at the last part, making Izuku look over.

 

“You don’t know your Semblance yet?”

 

Jaune crossed his arms and looked down, a bit of pink dusting his face. “No…”

 

“What about you Izuku, have you found your Semblance yet?” She looked at Jaune sympathetically. 

 

Izuku scratched at his face. “Uh...well…” He thought back to Yang, how he made her go flying. In his room with that _thing_ , and the gauze. “Kinda, yeah…”

 

They both jumped up. “You found your Semblance!” They shouted, earning a scolding shush from afar.

 

“I’m sorry.” She apologized before looking back over to the startled boy. “You found your Semblance?” 

 

“What is it?” Jaune asked.

 

“Uh, well it’s kinda...uh…” He looked around, seeing an open book on the table. “Well, I can do...this.”

 

They watched him hold out two hands, focusing on a book at Pyrrha’s side. He bit his lip as a green aura surrounded the book, slowly lifting it into the air. He sighed as he began to bring his hands back, the book following and slowly floating into his hands.

 

He took a deep breath as he held it up.

 

“That.”

 

“You have telekinesis!” 

 

“Like Professor Goodwitch.”

 

Pyrrha smiled at him. “Well then, I suppose we have an idea of what you can work on.” He couldn’t help but notice a small look of confusion cross her features before she recovered.

 

“And what exactly would that be?”

 

“A Semblance is like a muscle, the more practice you have, the stronger it is.” 

 

“So...you want me to practice using my Semblance.” 

 

“Exactly.”

 

“Uh...okay how?” 

 

“Come on.” She motioned for him to stand up, then at both of the boys to follow after her. 

 

“Where exactly is she taking us?”

 

“To where we train,” Jaune answered.

 

Izuku looked around. “And uh, where exactly do you guys train? I thought you had training grounds.”

 

“We do, but this is where Pyrrha gives personal lessons. It’s where she taught me how to fight...and is still teaching me.” He smiled, watching her as she walked ahead of them. She seemed eager and excited. “She’s amazing. She offered to teach me how to fight, even after I was a complete jerk to her and our team. I’m not gonna lie, I was garbage before she took the time to help me.”

 

“Ah…” 

 

They stayed quiet as they entered the dormitories, then up a flight of stairs. And another, and another.

 

They kept going until they came out to the rooftop of one of the buildings. 

 

“Uhh, a rooftop?” 

 

“Yeah, but we usually train at night. It’s pretty calm right now, so it should be alright for training. And, I don’t think we’re gonna be doing anything physically taxing...sort of.”

 

“Sort of?” Izuku looked up.

 

“It can be pretty tiring, doing Aura training. And I think using your Semblance might be tiring for you. Considering you haven’t practiced with it very much.”

 

“So...it’ll just drain my Aura?”

 

“Most likely, yes.”

 

“Alright, you two.” Pyrrha stopped them. “We’re not necessarily going to do too much. We won’t push ourselves too hard.”

 

_Speak for yourself_

 

“So Jaune we’re going to resume what we’ve been doing from last time. Izuku, here.” She dropped three decently sized stones into his hand. “We don’t quite know your limits as of yet, but I’d say this is enough.”

 

Izuku looked over the stones.

 

“You want me to make these float, but for how long?”

 

“As long as you can.”

 

“Okay…”

 

He looked over the stones and sat himself down, watching as Pyrrha and Jaune walked away a bit and sit down themselves.

 

He hummed and looked down at the stones, placing them down.

 

“Okay, I should be able to pick up all three.” He began to mumble. “They’re small, I think I can handle that...maybe the weight of something might affect how well I can pick up something. Well, only one way to find out.”

 

He straightened up and held out his hands, looking down at the rocks. He grunted as he saw the green aura surround one of the rocks.

 

“One…”

 

He bit his lip as the second one was outlined with the aura, then the third.

 

He let out a deep breath as he looked at the rocks. 

 

“Okay.” He slowly lifted his hands, narrowing his eyes as they barely lifted off the ground. Going no higher than an inch.

 

“Oh don’t give me that.” He made a small jerking motion, the stones suddenly lifting a bit. “Okay, good.”

 

He hummed to himself as he slowly got to his feet, trying his best to keep the stones rising with him. One or two of them lagged a bit before catching up. He huffed and put one hand behind his back, keeping one arm held out. 

 

He tried his best to hold it, finding the stones slipping more often. He grunted and held out his other hand, panting. 

 

“There...two hands. Can’t pull off one just yet.” He shook his head.

 

He took another deep breath before looking at the stones again.

 

“Feels hard to focus…” He mumbled, trying to keep one or another from falling. “Come on you repelled people before, you should be able to deal with these.”

 

Izuku held one hand out, palm facing the sky. He flexed his fingers a bit, drawing them closer together. He hummed as he held out a finger on the other hand. 

 

“Let’s see what else I can do…” His eye twitched as a headache began to thrum in his skull. He grunted and swiped the finger through the air, making the stones slowly rotate around each other.

 

“Ha…” He smiled. “Okay, okay. I get it now…” He made the rocks spin a little faster. “I gotta focus on all three in order to-ugh.” He almost let one slip. “One would probably be easier to control...the weight and number of the objects probably affects my abilities too.”

 

He sighed and lowered the rocks to the ground, falling over with the rocks. He sighed and held his head, the headache seemed to ease a bit with him stopping the use of his Semblance.

 

“Maybe I should try just using one now.” He rubbed his temples. “I gotta wonder what my limit is on weight. I was able to toss Yang away, but that was instinct. I wasn’t thinking…” He leaned back and stared at the small stones. “Then again, can I only control the whole thing, or could I only manipulate part of my target? If so, that’d make dodging punches and stuff way easier, I’d just have to adjust the fist of the person.” 

 

“He’s mumbling again,” Jaune whispered to Pyrrha. “Is that a good sign?”

 

“Yes, I believe it is.” She nodded.

 

They watched him hold out both hands, this time only picking up one of the rocks. He didn’t seem to be as strained as before. They saw him put one hand behind his back, turning over the rock as best he could with the free hand. He ended up using both hands after some time, finding it easier to manipulate the rock.

 

“How long until he runs out of Aura?” Jaune asked, seeing him pick up a second rock. Still mumbling to himself.

 

“Honestly, I’m not sure. Anyway, let’s get back to work Jaune.”

 

“Yeah, I know.” He sighed. 

 

They stayed on the roof for a few hours, listening to people passing by from below. Loud cheers and yells and students ran around with friends. 

 

Jaune fell on his back with a loud groan. “Ugh, I’m tired.”

 

“Alright, I think that’s enough for today. You did well today Jaune.”

 

“Doesn’t feel like it.” He muttered.

 

“I’m sure we’ll find your Semblance soon, there’s no need to rush yourself.” She placed a hand on his shoulder and smiled.

 

She felt her face warm up a bit as he smiled back. “Yeah, I guess.”

 

They stayed like that for a bit until a loud yell of pain sounded from the ground. They looked over to where they thought it came from and saw Izuku pressing himself against the wall.

 

“The rocks fell.” He put his hands up. “I didn’t mean to, they just...fell. I couldn’t grab them back.”

 

Pyrrha hummed and stood up. “I guess you finally ran out of Aura. How do you feel?”

 

“Tired…” He muttered, rubbing his temples again. “And I’ve got a headache.”

 

“You might have overdone it.” She smiled. 

 

“Are you supposed to get headaches with your Semblances?” He asked, watching them walk towards the stairs. Following after.

 

“I have no idea.” Jaune shrugged.

 

“Again, you might have overdone it. It’s best to just let yourself recharge and regain all your Aura.” 

 

“Is there any way to speed up the process? Or is it just a matter of sitting around and resting?”

 

“You need to rest.” Pyrrha nodded. “Although your Aura will begin recharging the moment it isn’t being used. Though keep in mind that everyone recovers at different speeds.”

 

“I see.” He sighed, rubbing his eyes as he slowed down a bit. Lest he bump into something or someone again.

 

Pyrrha and Jaune carried on their conversation, not straying too far away from the boy.

 

Izuku sighed as he looked around. His mind still racing around, going through the events of the morning, the Aura training, what would come once they all found out about him.

 

The last thought sent his heart pounding and mind racing.

 

He was scared they’d leave him, that they’d see him for what he really was.

 

_Why are you so sure of that? What if they don’t leave you?_

 

_They will, why would they want to deal with someone like me? Someone who can’t defend himself…_

 

_If they don’t see it now, they’ll see it then. Why do they even keep me around now, I mean isn’t it obvious? Is it just because they have to, in case I lose control like I did back then?_

 

He slowed his walk, eventually coming to a stop. Something that was noticed by the two older students after a moment.

 

“Huh? Izuku, what’s wrong?” Jaune turned around after seeing him stop. He and Pyrrha looked at each other before approaching him. “Is everything okay?”

 

Izuku furrowed his brow, keeping his gaze to the floor.

 

“I have a question…” He mumbled.

 

“What was that?” Pyrrha asked.

 

“I...have a question.”

 

“Ok, shoot.” 

 

“Why…” He frowned and looked around as if he was trying to find the words. It took a moment before he spoke again.“Why do you guys like me?”

 

The two looked confused. 

 

“What?” They asked.

 

“Why do you like me?” He asked. “Like...why do you guys want me around? Why do you want me as a friend?” He gripped the hem of his shirt. “I don’t get it. I mean...don’t I drag you guys d-down? You’re all just l-leagues ahead of me, a-and I’m-”

 

He stopped when Jaune placed a hand on his shoulder. “Hey, stop that. What do you mean why do we want you around? Izuku, you’re our friend.”

 

“But why would you want me as a-”

 

“A friend? Why wouldn’t we?” He stopped Izuku again.

 

“Izuku…” Pyrrha stepped forward, placing a hand in his hair. “You’re a kind, honest person, you’re smart and creative. You think of how to utilize equipment and abilities in ways others don’t think of. You’re passionate, you want to help others to the best of your abilities. Honestly, there is so much about you I can’t list it all here.”

 

“You’re a good person, you work hard, you’re dedicated. If the nightly runs are anything to go by.” Jaune smiled. “You keep going no matter how tired you are. 

 

Izuku stared at them for a while before turning his gaze to the ground.

 

_A good person? Honest? But you guys don’t even know about...that._

 

He bit his lip and opened his mouth to speak when he suddenly found himself being hugged by the two. They held onto him firmly, a silent affirmation.

 

He let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding, a tension he wasn’t even aware of left him. When had he gotten so wound up?

 

He wasn’t sure how long they had stood there for, hugging him tightly. 

 

It felt like forever until they let him go. 

 

Izuku blinked hard and looked up at them, seeing them smile.

 

“How about we head to the fairgrounds. Get something to eat and meet up with the others? We still have some time before we have to go to bed.” Pyrrha asked.

 

Izuku took a moment before nodding. “Y-Yeah. That sounds good.”

 

“Come on, I think I saw a few booths that served dishes from Mistral the other day. It should still be there!”

 

“Let’s go then.” 

 

**-.-**

 

“Hey, you guys!”

 

The three looked up to see a trail of rose petals racing towards them, stopping right in front of them. 

 

“You guys have been gone a while, how are you doing?” That last part seemed to be directed towards Izuku.

 

“Y-Yeah. We’re doing okay.” He nodded.

 

“That’s good. We’re gonna go grab something to eat right now, wanna join?” She began walking towards a booth where the others stood.

 

“Yes please.” Izuku smiled.

 

Ruby dragged Izuku along and had him stand with her. Pyrrha and Jaune following after the two.

 

“It was not my fault!” Nora shouted, pointing a plastic fork at Yang.

 

“You nearly destroyed the booth.” Weiss raised an eyebrow.

 

“But I won didn’t I?” She put her hands on her hips, puffing out her chest.

 

“Yes, at the expense of the booth.” Ren handed her a small plate.

 

“Still got what I wanted!” She held up a small stuffed bunny.

 

“All that trouble, for a bunny?” 

 

“Do I even wanna know what you guys are talking about?” Jaune asked as he walked over. 

 

“Nora nearly destroyed one of the game booths for a stuffed animal.” Ren held up her prize.

 

“It was worth it!” he shouted.

 

“We’re not allowed to go near that booth anymore.”

 

“Correction, _she’s_ not allowed.” Yang crossed her arms.

 

“Yang, you almost ruined it too when you lost.” Ruby chimed in.

 

“I’m telling you that thing was rigged.” She pointed at Ruby.

 

“I think all the games are rigged to a certain extent.” Blake leaned over.

 

“My, it certainly sounds like you all had quite the eventful day.” Pyrrha laughed. “Are there any other incidents we should know about?”

 

“No.” They all said in unison.

 

“If that isn’t suspicious then I don’t know what is.” Izuku mumbled.

 

“Shhhh.” Ruby shoved a small roll of bread into his mouth. “You don’t need to know.” She whispered as they began to walk away, food in hand.

 

Izuku said something, but went mostly unheard thanks to the roll. 

 

“Mhm, yup I agree. No need to talk about the earlier events of the day.” Ruby nodded. “What about you guys, what did you do?”

 

“Spent some quiet time on a roof.” Jaune groaned. “Pyrrha had me do Aura training.”

 

“You did well, there’s no need to groan about it.”

 

“What about you Izuku? I take it you slept the entire time?” Ruby looked over at him. 

 

“No! What gave you that idea?” He felt his face warm up a bit as he finished the roll.

 

“I mean you just kinda conked out at the breakfast table. Did you know that you mumble in your sleep? I gotta wonder, who the heck is Kaccha-” She was cut off as he spoke again.

 

“No need to talk about the earlier events of the day...I thought I got rid of that habit…” He muttered the last part. 

 

“Hey, you can’t use that we have a reason to say that.” She pointed at him.

 

“And what reason might that be?” He shot back

 

“I thought we agreed we wouldn’t talk about it!”

 

“You guys messed up a booth didn’t you? Or did you make someone upset?” Jaune asked.

 

“Noooo.” Nora looked around.

 

“Was it anyone official looking?” Pyrrha asked.

 

Ren shook his head.

 

“Okay, so we should be in the clear.” Jaune sighed. “Hm, this is really good.” 

 

Pyrrha nodded, looking around to see a booth with a few dents in the wood. She could see a few stuffed animals on the shelves. That had to be the scene of _one_ of the incidents mentioned. It looked like a ring toss game.

 

They spent a while like that, laughing and poking fun at each other. Talking about the upcoming fights and what the classes would be like after the festival. 

 

Some of them looked nervous, sure that their combat teachers would make them work even harder. Glynda to be specific.

 

The sun began to go down as they left the fairgrounds, casting everything in an orange light. They took their time, strolling through the school grounds and occasionally stopping here and there to sit down and enjoy themselves.

 

One they were halfway to the dorms, Ruby suddenly shouted 

 

“Woah, guys look at that view!” She pointed towards the sunset.

 

They all turned their heads to see what she was talking about. Everyone stopped in their tracks and stared at the sight. 

 

The sun was approaching the horizon, casting the last of its bright rays onto the city that seemed so far away. They all stopped and stared for a while.

 

“Hey guys.” Yang spoke up first. “Group photo?”

 

“Yeah!” 

 

They all hurried forward a gathered together. When they finally got into what they thought was the perfect setting Weiss spoke up.

 

“Um, quick question. Who’s going to be taking the photo?” 

 

They all stopped and looked at each other.

 

“Uh…”

 

“We uh...didn’t think about that.” Jaune asked.

 

“Maybe we can get someone else to take it?”

 

They were all quiet for a moment.

 

“Uuhhh, hold on.” Ruby shot off from where she was standing, leaving a trail of petals in her wake.

 

Blake laughed lightly. “Can’t believe we forgot that part.” She shook her head.

 

“It’s been a long day, there’s nothing wrong with forgetting a few things.” Yang smiled.

 

“Like a camera to take a photo?” Izuku hummed.

 

They shared a small laugh before Ruby came back, speeding over to them while a man walked over at a leisurely pace.

 

Ruby unfolded her scroll and handed it to him. “Uncle Qrow! Can you take a picture for us?” She asked, rushing back to her group. “Please!”

 

The man stared at her for a bit sighed before smiling at her. “Sure kiddo.”

 

He pressed a few things on the device before holding it up. “Alrighty, one...two…”

 

A few of them quickly adjusted themselves before the photo was taken.

 

“...Two and a half…two and a-”

 

“Uncle Qrow!” Yang shouted.

 

The man took a second to laugh before shaking his head. “Alright, three.”

 

A click was heard and Qrow put the phone down, handing it to the girl as she ran over.

 

“Thank you!”

 

“No problem kid. You all should start heading to your dorms, don’t you have fights tomorrow?”

 

“Yeah, what do you think we were doing?” Ruby crossed her arms.

 

“Standing there and looking pretty while you had no one to take the picture.” He smirked.

 

“Yeah, well...what are _you_ doing?” She began to argue with them as they started their walk again. Looking up from her phone the the man as she went.

 

“I’m an adult, I can do whatever I want.”

 

“Like get into fights?” She smiled. Weiss made a noise before crossing her arms.

 

Qrow only shrugged. “Yeah, sure.”

 

“You’re an adult on school grounds. You have rules too.” Yang walked on the other side of him.

 

“Do I?”

 

“Yes!”

 

It wasn’t long before the adult left them and the group had to split up again, the sky was growing dark. The shattered moon beginning to rise.

 

It had fascinated Izuku when he first saw it, it still did. He couldn’t help but wonder how that happened to the moon, or if it was always meant to be like that. Right from the very start.

 

“Alright, I guess we’ll see you later.” Jaune waved at him as they begin to walk in a different direction.

 

“Yeah, see you guys in the morning.” Izuku yawned.

 

“Please try to get some sleep.” Jaune called back.

 

“What do you think I’m gonna do?”

 

“Run around?” 

 

“No!”

 

Izuku gave them one last wave before heading to his room, rubbing his eyes. He was tired, but this time it felt like a good tired. He didn’t even remember getting to his room and beginning to settle down. 

 

As he began to change his clothes he noticed a small scrap of paper on the desk. He raised an eyebrow and looked it over.

 

_‘Locker No. 387’_

 

_-Yang_

 

“Oh.” It had suddenly hit him that he no longer had his weapons. Only his mask. “I’m gonna have to thank her later…”

 

He sighed and laid down, as he turned off the lights a small buzz was heard from his folded up scroll. 

 

He groaned to himself and opened it, finding a message from Ruby. 

 

“Huh?”

 

He opened it quickly and saw she had sent him the picture of the group from earlier.

 

She and Jaune were in the middle, their team mates behind them in the order of the name. Izuku was there between Jaune and Pyrrha, smiling.

 

He smiled to himself, and as he saved the image Ruby sent another message.

 

_‘Thought you might like to have this saved, good night! :D’_

 

He texted back a ‘Thank you’ and put the scroll down.

 

It was a fun day, it had seemed to start off bad but thankfully took a turn for the better towards the end.

 

It was nice, having them as friends.

 

 _Real_ friends.

 

Really, it was nice while it lasted.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd say there are about 2-4 chapters left of the RWBY universe left


	12. Desperate Times

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The beginning of the end

****

“So uh, you wanna guess these two didn’t watch our previous match?” Jaune flinched as Nora slammed her hammer into a Faunus boy and knocked him into the water of the arena. Putting him just above the red for his Aura.

“Yeah...I’m gonna guess they didn’t,” Izuku muttered.

A Faunus duo from Vacuo had gone up against Pyrrha and Nora. One of them had a whip that could discharge dust at will. Nora had chosen to take him on while Pyrrha took on the other, who had a pair of boomerangs that could change into a pair of short swords. 

Again and again, she deflected the boomerangs back with her shield and her spear in its gun form. Only making small adjustments to them when needed

“She hardly uses her Semblance…” Izuku muttered. “She just makes the slightest adjustments it’s so hard to tell.”

“Well, Pyrrha is a world-renowned fighter.” Weiss hummed in a matter of fact tone. “Of course she has a few tricks up her sleeve.”

“Yeah, I guess you’ve got a point there…” Izuku mumbled.

“How much longer do you think they’ll let this go on for?” Ruby asked.

“Once Pyrrha gets close to that guy it’s over for him.” Izuku nodded. “But she has to time it so he throws it away as she rushes in, then takes him down from there. If she’s lucky she’ll be able to use the return trip of the boomerangs against him.”

They watched as Nora finished taking out the other Faunus, knocking him out of the arena.

The loud buzzer distracted the other Faunus, making him look to where his friend was thrown. Pyrrha took advantage of the distraction and rushed forward, throwing her shield ahead of her. 

“Or  _ that _ could happen too.”

The boy looked back at Pyrrha just to get smacked in the face with the shield, stumbling back a few feet. He was knocked further away as she struck him hard in the chest.

“Nora!” She shouted.

“Got it!” Nora gave a thumbs up, turning her hammer into a grenade launcher and shooting at him. Making stumble around, trying to clear the pink smoke. Pyrrha grunted as she threw her spear into the smoke without a second thought. Absolutely sure of her aim.

There was a loud yell as the Faunus crashed into a tree, pinned to it by his coat.

Jaune looked over to Team RWBY as a loud crash was heard from the arena, making Izuku cringe in sympathetic pain this time.

“So you and Yang are the last fight for the day right?” Jaune asked, addressing Weiss.

“Yes, we are.”

“You wanna do anything after the fight? Say...dinner? Just you and me?”

“Dude…” Izuku gave him a look. 

“I’ll be spending the rest of the day with my team, as you should yours.” She huffed. 

“Rejected once again.” Blake hummed.

“What’s the tally at?” Ruby looked at Ren.

“For today, I believe we are at two.”

“Oh, so normal.”

Jaune sighed and looked at the arena, watching Pyrrha. He smiled as she dodged and blocked the swords, striking out when she had an opening and always landing the hit. She was amazing.

Izuku hummed as he looked up at the giant screen, seeing the last team member drop below the red. Ending the match.

“Kinda hungry…” He muttered.

“Come on, you can hold out until the last match.” Ruby smiled.

“Ugh.” He leaned back. “I’m gonna die of starvation.”

“No, you’re not. Besides, it’s your fault for not eating breakfast.” Ruby crossed her arms. 

Izuku only groaned in response and put his head down.

“We told you to eat.” Jaune frowned.

“I wasn’t very hungry.” He sighed.

“And you didn’t eat, now look where you are.” Ren raised an eyebrow.

Izuku hummed. “I know I know, I must suffer the consequences of my actions.” He leaned back. 

“Exactly.” Ruby nodded. “By the way Izuku…” 

“Hm?” He looked over.

“Think fast!” She tossed something to him, almost hitting him with a ball of paper. 

He yelped and held his hands out, catching the piece of paper with his Semblance. He looked up after a moment and huffed.

“You find great entertainment in this don’t you?” He frowned.

“Kinda.” she giggled.

He grunted and flipped out a finger, sending the paper back to her. She caught it with ease and laughed. 

As he sat back in his seat she tossed it again at him, and he caught it again. 

“Keep it up Ruby, I’m gonna keep it next time.”

“Go ahead, I have plenty. Besides, this helps you with your reaction time.” She caught it as he threw it back.

Izuku sighed and watched the teams exit the arena, it was a victory for Team JNPR. “So you guys are moving forward. I take it you’re sending Pyrrha into the singles round?” He asked.

“We sure are!” Jaune nodded.

“What about you guys?” Izuku looked to Ruby, getting a wad of paper in the face as he turned to her.

“Oops...sorry.” She laughed. “Uh, well we’re going to send in Yang after they win.”

Izuku grabbed the wad of paper and threw it away. “Well, I can see why.” He muttered as Weiss and Yang headed out. “Yang is your powerhouse, and the longer a fight with her lasts the worse it’ll be for her opponent. Enough damage done to her and she should be able to take out someone in one go.”

“They still have to get through the doubles round.” Blake sighed. 

“I know they will!” Ruby smiled. 

“They’re up against an Atlas team…” Izuku muttered. “Gotta wonder what they’ll be like.” He hummed.

“No idea.” 

“What’s this about an Atlas team?” A voice spoke up as she appeared.

“Pyrrha! Nora!” Ruby cheered.

“Hey guys!” Nora plopped down into her seat. 

“Hey, you two.” Jaune looked at them. “Great fight.” 

“Thank you.” Pyrrha nodded. “Couldn’t have done it without Nora.” She smiled.

“You hardly used your Semblance…” Izuku muttered. “Just making the tiniest adjustments. It’s really hard to tell from afar.”

“Well, she comes off as  _ untouchable _ for a reason.” Nora grinned.

“Is that what you meant when referring to Aura training?” Izuku asked.

“Excuse me?”

“I mean, you said it’s more effective to know how to use your Aura with your Semblance instead of trying to make  _ more _ Aura. Do you know what I mean? But you hardly use your Polarity, and if anything you use your Aura for more defensive purposes. Tanking the hits when there’s no way repel them, although that’s kind of rare. Granted your shield takes the brunt of the damage…minimizing a greater part of the attack if anything.” 

“I like his muttering rants,” Nora whispered to Ren. “They’re fun to listen to.”

“So, speaking about Semblances actually…” He began tapping his chin. “You said it’s like a muscle right? So does that technically mean that the more you use it and the stronger it gets the less Aura it’d use? I mean, with something like mine I think a single heavy item would take a lot. Or multiple small items like the rocks...or-Ruby!” He whined the last part as he was hit with another wad of paper.

“Sorry.” She gave a cheesy grin.

He grunted and made himself use his Semblance, throwing it back at her. It hit her forehead and she stood up, a few more papers in her hands. 

It only took a few moments before a small fight broke out between them, paper flying everywhere. Thrown either by hands or a Semblance. A few wads were misfired and flew towards the others as they had their little scuffle.

“Alright, both of you settle down,” Pyrrha said as the announcements came on. She held out a hand and made Ruby sit down. It was a bit easier since she had bits of metal around her waist.

“Ha!” Izuku relished in temporary triumph until there was a light tug on the faceguard that sat on his neck. 

“You too Izuku.” 

The two sat down and shot little looks towards each other here and there, holding a small wad of paper up menacingly.

“And now, for our final fight of the day. Team RWBY’s Yang Xiao Long and Weiss Schnee versus Team FNKI’s Flint Coal and Neon Katt!”

The crowd cheered loudly as the two teams came out to the main arena.

They all looked over to see the two members of the Atlas team and half of the small group raised their eyebrows.

“They’re from Atlas?” Izuku asked.

“Yup, looks like it.” Ruby nodded.

“What exactly were you expecting?” Blake asked, closing her book.

“Well, I’m not gonna lie the Atlas Kingdom being as military centered as it is I half expected the students to be kinda…”

“Uniform? Strict looking?” Jaune finished.

“Yeah, kinda.”

“Well, this is a bit of a pleasant surprise.” Ruby hummed.

“Hey, you’re Weiss Schnee, right? The heiress?” The guy, Flynt had asked. 

“I am.” Weiss nodded and smiled

“I take it you’re pretty good with Dust then.” He crossed his arms.

“I try my best.” She shrugged.

“Yeah, my dad was pretty good with Dust too. Owned a small Dust shop of his own…’til your father’s company ran him outta business.” 

“Oh boy…” Izuku muttered. “Oh yeah, the Schnee’s are the biggest...Dust...oh. Oh no…”

A few of the others hissed a bit.

“Oh.” Weiss frowned. “I’m sorry to hear that.”

“Yeah, sure you are.” He snapped.

Yang growled and stepped forward. “Hey, why don’t you-”

“Hey! Why don’t you- that’s what  _ you _ sound like.” The girl, Neon spoke up. “Hey, where’d you get your hair extensions?” She asked.

“Uh, this is just my normal hair.” Yang frowned.

“Yeah, is that a-”

“You should try rollerblading sometime. It’s super fun. It’d probably take you a while though since you’re so...you know...top-heavy.”

Irritation crossed her face, making Izuku shrink away a bit.

“E-Excuse me?” The arena was beginning to set itself up.

“Oh boy, here we go.” Ruby sighed.

“This has happened before?” Izuku asked.

Ruby covered her face. “Too many times.” 

“Hm.” Izuku looked back down at the arena. “Well, I sorta get what they’re doing.” He crossed his arms. “Neon anyway. That Flynt guy has a grudge against her family but he’s still kind of using that to their advantage.”

“What do you mean?” Jaune raised an eyebrow.

“Basically they’re throwing them off.” Izuku said simply. 

“Oh.”

“3...2...1...Begin!”

There was a moment of pause before Team FNKI looked at each other, then back to the other two. Then, without warning Flynt took a deep breath and blew a shrill note through his trumpet, making Weiss and Yang stumble back a bit. Neon took advantage and used the sound waves to rush forward, knocking Yang back into the city ruins environment.

“Yang and Neon...Weiss and Flynt.” Izuku muttered, his eyes darting around.

“The fight just started, how’s it looking?” Jaune asked.

“Yang versus an enemy who specializes in speed? Not sure how well that’ll end if I’m being honest. Weiss is probably gonna be dependant on her Gravity Dust for now. If she tried to go long range, he’d probably be able to repel those too.”

“So not too good?” Ruby grimaced.

“Well I didn’t say that. And I’m not saying it's hopeless, I’m saying it’s a tough situation.” He shrugged.

“They’ll be able to pull it off.” Jaune smiled.

They watched Weiss used Gravity Dust to take a few steps forward before Flynt stopped his barrage and made her stumble forward. She tried to recover and strike him, only for him to dodge and land a hard kick to her back. 

Meanwhile Yang was trying to catch Neon, shouting as she shot at her. Each missing as the feline Faunus skated around. She made a face at Yang which only made the blonde react in anger, yet again. 

“She’s agile…” Izuku mumbled, watching her flip through the air this way and that. 

He flinched when he saw the girl race towards Yang, leaving a streak of rainbows behind her. Yang didn’t react fast enough a got a smack to the face from Neon’s nunchucks. She took advantage of Yang’s momentary shock and landed one hit after another, again and again.

“Giving her ammo.” Ruby hummed, watching her sister reload.

“Yeah, but it won’t be any good if she misses.” Izuku argued. “Which, she’s kinda doing a lot right now…”

They watched as Neon snapped something on her weapon, making it glow blue. She raced forward and smacked her again, this time freezing one of her legs in a block of ice.

“Look, now you’re bottom heavy.” Neon giggled. Yang yelled and stomped on the ice, shattering it. She barely took a step forward before getting smacked with the nunchucks again, this time freezing her arm and sending her into a wall.

Yang growled and slammed an arm into the wall behind her.

Meanwhile Weiss shot chunks of ice at Flynt, having failed again and again to get close to him. Flynt only moved to the side, flipping over and letting out another loud note and sending the fire from the geyser to melt the ice. 

“Too bad all that money can’t buy you skill.” He smirked.

Weiss huffed and spun the dial on her weapon and pointed it forward, fighting him with her own gust of wind. 

She narrowed her eyes before snapping her fingers and making a series of glyphs surrounding Flynt. 

Weiss wasted no time in darting around, chunks of ice flying towards him and striking him multiple times. 

“Well that’s one way to do it.” Izuku hummed, looking up at the large screen and watching his Aura go down. “You can’t attack from the from, so go from behind. It would be reckless to try and spin around with that, he might end up hurting himself…”

“It looks like the tables have turned!” Ruby grinned, it faltered a bit when she saw Flynt split into four different figures, letting out another shrill note as they caught Weiss between two of her glyphs and sent them flying.

“Whoa!” Jaune’s eyes widened. 

“Is  _ that _ his Semblance?” Izuku asked.

“It seems young Flynt has activated his Semblance! Ladies and gentlemen! Feast your eyes on Flynt Coal’s...Killer Quartet!”

“Well I guess that answers your question.” Ren nodded.

“Ooh, flashy eyes!” Neon smiled as she skated around Yang. “You know, you’re actually kind of pretty when you’re angry.”

“Shut up! Shut up Shut up!” Yang shouted, once again going on a barrage. Trying to hit her before she lost a bit of steam. 

Flynt placed a foot on Weiss’s weapon, keeping her from getting it back. He looked up to see Neon skating around the angry girl, getting more and more irritated.

“Honestly, how can people intentionally provoke her? I mean...it’s not gonna end well…” Izuku watched her. “I mean I get for throwing her off, but at this point they’re just playing with fire.”

He went quiet as they watched Flynt smirk and turn away from Weiss, splitting into four and raising the trumpet. As he was about to attack, Weiss jumped at him and tackled him to the ground as a fire geyser erupted.

“Weiss!” Everyone jumped up in concern.

“It appears we have a double knockout! In fact, Miss Schnee’s Aura is completely depleted! She sacrificed herself to take out Flynt!” Dr. Oobleck rattled off, sounding like he was on the edge of his seat.

Izuku looked at the clearing smoke in the arena. “He’s not down yet…”

“What?” Ruby gave him a look. “What do you mean? He has to…”

“His Aura is right there, teetering, one more hit would take him out but…” He shook his head. He was proven right as Flynt was seen stumbling forward, gathering himself. He walked forward as Neon skated around him.

“You did it! Don’t worry about her, she’s easy! But kind of annoying…”

“Ooh, it looks like Yang’s angry. And you wouldn’t like her when she’s…upset…”

Yang let out an angry scream as fire erupted somewhere behind her.

Ruby and Blake looked a little worried. Nora looked ready to jump out of her seat.

“How well is this gonna go over?” Jaune asked.

Izuku cringed. “No idea…”

“They’re going to be okay.” Pyrrha nodded. “Yang will pull through, I’m sure of it.”

“You got this Yang!” Ruby yelled as Flynt played another note on his trumpet, sending Neon forward. 

They watched as the two traded blows, trying to get one over on the other. Before Neon could really land a hit Yang took to the air, propelling herself with her bullets. She began letting off a barrage, trying to strike Neon, and only breaking the ground instead. 

She let out another yell as she aimed at Flynt, making him stumble and sending Neon off course. 

After Neon passed her Yang rushed towards Flynt. He saw her, and as a last ditch effort split himself into four figures again and tried to blow her away. She didn’t let that happen and closed her hands around the head of the trumpet.

There was a moment of silence before Flynt was knocked back into his copies and sent tumbling to the dust.

“Okay that’s one…” Izuku muttered. “All that’s left is…”

Everyone watched as Neon struggled around the geysers, trying to keep her balance. There was a moment where her skate got caught on a rock, and it was all over. 

Yang watched her tumble forward and how she was sent airborne. She smirked and let off one more shot, a bright explosion following after.

A loud buzzer went off and Ruby and Blake took off. 

“That was really close…” Izuku sighed, leaning back. He hadn’t realized he had gotten so tense.

“Yeah, phew.” Jaune shook his head.

“I told you they would pull through.” Pyrrha nodded.

“It was kind of a bad matchup.” Izuku sighed. “I think things would have gone smoother if Yang was with Flynt and Neon with Weiss.” He began to tap his chin. 

“He’s gonna do it again!”

“Weiss could have-”

“Hold on. Before you go on a tangent, let’s get something to eat.” Jaune stood up. “It’s been a long day, and I think our victors deserve a victory lunch!” 

“...But it’s almost sundown.” Ren said.

“Well then victory dinner. Either way let’s just...come on.” Jaune walked off and the others followed, Izuku in tow.

It didn’t take them too long to congratulate Team RWBY and head back down to land. Conversations jumping from here to there before finding something to eat.

“So you’re sending Pyrrha to the singles round right?” Izuku asked, taking a bite from his sandwich. Victory dinner was a couple sandwiches from a really good booth towards the edge of the fairgrounds.

“Yeah, why wouldn’t we?” Nora asked. “She’s a world renowned fighter!”

“Personally I would be hard pressed between choosing you two.” He shrugged.

“And why is that?” Ren asked.

“Well you’ve got Nora who’s your heavy hitter, her power would be amplified by electricity. But it’d be a bargain if you get paired up with someone who uses that. If anything, she can use brute force to get past an opponent or catch them off guard. But Pyrrha has a better means of defense, having a shield and all. Not to mention her Semblance allowed her to push away or redirect anything that comes her way...granted if it’s metal. Which everything seems to be.”

“True, but Pyrrha is the most skilled out of all of us. Almost none of her opponents know her Semblance unlike Nora’s.” Ren looked at him. “And that gives her an upper hand, that would keep them guessing.”

“I suppose so…” He began tapping his fingers again. “Either way, it sounds like it’ll be one heck of a fight to watch. The singles are tomorrow right?”

“Yupperoni!” Nora nodded. 

“Hey guys.” Jaune smiled as he walked towards them.

“Jaune!”

Izuku looked around as Jaune sat down beside him. “Where’s Pyrrha?” He asked.

“She got called by one of the teachers. Something about talking about her performance I think was what they said?” He rubbed the back of his head.

“She’s not in trouble is she?” Izuku frowned.

“No, I don’t think so. I think they wanted to congratulate her or something?”

“I think or something would be more accurate.” He took another bite of his meal.

“Either way, we’ll see her a little later. At least she got to eat something before having to head off.”

“Yeah I guess…” He went quiet.

“Hey, don’t worry. I’m sure everything is okay.” Jaune put a hand on his shoulder.

“Yeah.” 

“Hey guys!” Ruby waved as she spotted them.

“Hey Ruby!” Nora waved her arms around as the girl sped towards them. 

“Hey, where are Weiss and Yang?” Jaune asked.

“They’re resting, the fight was a little rough on them. Blake is getting something to eat, but I think she might go back to see the others if they haven’t fallen asleep.”

“Shouldn’t you accompany your team though?” Ren asked.

“I don’t wanna bother them.” She shook her head. “Besides, we need Yang at full power for tomorrow’s round!”

“You’re sending Yang into singles? Well makes sense.” Izuku looked up.

“Of course it makes sense! As team leader, I feel that I made the right choice!” She put her hands on her hips.

“I thought you guys put it to a vote.” Izuku raised an eyebrow.

“A-A vote  _ I _ decided on.” 

“Uh huh…”

“Shut up Izuku, move over I wanna eat too.”

“W-Well get your own food! This is the only thing I’ve eaten all day!”

“Share!”

“No!”

**-.-**

Pyrrha tried to keep her cool as she stepped into the elevator with the Professor Ozpin, Glynda, Qrow, and General Ironwood.

She looked around at them before looking down at the ground.

‘ _ You know who we are. We’re still the same teachers and headmasters you met when you arrived at Beacon.’ _

_ ‘Cept we’ve got a little part time job.’ _

_ ‘We are the protectors of this world.’ _

_ ‘And we need your help’ _

Magic, The Four Maidens, The teachers and headmasters...it all sent her mind spinning. Even then though, she knew there was more coming. 

Part of her wanted to run back to the others at the fairgrounds and just stay with them. The other part of her felt the need to do this, they needed her help. Who was she to deny that? 

The sound of the elevator doors opening brought her back to the present, greeting her with the sight of a long, dark hallway. Dimly lit, seeming to stretch on forever.

Glynda waited for her to catch up while the other three walked forward. “I’m sure you must have questions.” She gave a sympathetic glance to the young woman.

Pyrrha looked around nervously. “Maybe one or two.” She began walking alongside her teacher again. “I still don’t understand, you said I was next in line to receive the Maiden’s power. What do you mean by that?”

Glyda sighed, looking ahead as she answered. “The Maidens have existed for thousands of years. But much like nature the seasons change, no two summers are alike. When a Maiden dies her power leaves the body and seeks out a new host. Ensuring the seasons are never lost and that no individual can hold onto the power forever.”

“So...how does the power choose?” She asked.

“Through a series of stupid and convoluted rules.”

“Qrow!”

“Hey, don’t get mad that I’m right.” He huffed.

Glynda shook her head and began to explain how the powers were given to specifically young women. But as time went on, the selection process was more intimate. How the last one in her thoughts are the first candidate to hold her power. Unless it's a man or someone old, then it would be random.

Pyrrha frowned as they continued to walk forward. “Why are you telling me this now? Why not wait until I’ve graduated?”

“Don’t know if you’ve noticed, but things are getting a lot scarier in the world right now. We’re out of time.” Qrow looked over his shoulder. “Tensions are high, Grimm are growing more prevalent and it’s not gonna be much longer before this peace we’re all enjoying ges right out the window.”

Pyrrha looked frightened for a moment. “You’re not talking about war, are you?”

Qrow shook his head. “We can fill you in on the details once we know you’re with us. For now, all you need to know was that one of the Maidens was attacked and for the first time in history, her powers were stolen.”

Ozpin slowed his walk to a stop before a large machine. On one side a small chamber was lifted up and occupied by a young woman. Clearly unconscious. The other was empty and lying on the ground.

Pyrrha shuddered as her eyes lay on the woman. “Is that…”

Ozpin sighed. “The current Fall Maiden. Amber.”

Pyrrha watched her, seeing the slow rise and fall of her chest. “She’s...she’s still alive.”

“For now.” Ironwood finally spoke. “We’re using state of the art Atlas technology to keep her stable. But a lot of this situation is...unprecedented.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“We don’t know what will happen if...when she passes.”

“Won’t her power just transfer to the next host?”

“Look who’s been listening. She is smart.”

“Qrow.” Glynda snapped at him again.

“Under normal circumstances, yes. But this is a delicate situation. It’s not uncommon for the last thoughts of the slain to be that of their attacker. And to make matters worse...no one’s ever seen the power split like this before. For all we know it will seek out it’s other half.”

“Her assailant…”

Ozpin turned to her. “And that would not bode well for any of us.”

Pyrrha swallowed hard before going up to the Maiden, putting a hand on the glass. If she was the next Maiden, if she took the other half of the power...she’d be hunted down by the assailant. Her friends could used against her. Would she have to be on the run her entire life?

“If all of this is true, then why keep it a secret?” She raised her voice. “If this girl is so important, if-if we’re truly on the brink of war, why not tell everyone?”

Glynda stepped forward, keeping her voice calm. “From what we used to understand, it used to be common knowledge.”

“Used to be?”

“Where do you think legends and fairy tales started? Even the craziest ones come from somewhere.” Qrow muttered as he took a drink.

“Our group was founded in order to protect both mankind and Maidens. Those hungry for power hunted them in hopes of inheriting that strength.”

“And, as you can imagine, the ones that succeeded weren’t exactly the kind of people you’d want to have unimaginable power.”

“And so this brotherhood chose to remove the maidens from the public eye, allowing their existence to fade away into legend.”

“Besides, all of this goes against human history, religion.” Qrow muttered. 

“And it would cause panic.” Ozpin added. “And we all know what that would bring clawin to our kingdoms’ walls.” 

“Which is why we’d like to-”

“I’ll do it..” She cut him off. “If you believe this will help humanity, I will become your Fall Maiden.”

The four adults went quiet looking between each other.

“That’s what you wanted right?”

“Tell her about the catch Ozpin.  _ Both _ of them…”

The headmaster sighed and stepped forward. “It is, but I’m afraid it’s not that simple. Given Amber’s condition you won’t be able to inherit her powers naturally. However, General Ironwood believes he has a solution to that.”

“For years, Atlas has been studying Aura from a scientific standpoint. We believe we can capture it.”

“Capture it and cram it into something else.” Qrow hissed. “Or in your case…” He looked at Pyrrha.

It took her a second to put two and two together before she jolted and looked at the General.

“That’s-”

“Classified.”

“Wrong!”

Glynda nodded, glaring up at the man. “The feeling is mutual. But desperate times called for desperate measures.”

“And these are desperate times indeed.” He stepped forward to Pyrha. “We can’t transfer Amber’s powers to you, but we can give you what those powers are bound to.”

“Her Aura…” Pyrrha looked down.

“Her life would become intertwined with yours.” Ozpin explained. “But the question is…”

“What’s that gonna do to you?” Qrow raised an eyebrow.

“You have an important decision before you, Miss Nikos. There’s no guarantee this transfer will work. And there's no telling if you’ll be the same person if it does. I’d advise you to take time thinking on this matter. But understand, that before the Vytal festival is over we will need your answer.”

Pyrrha shook her head before turning to face Amber, crossing her arms.

“Even...Even if I  _ do _ agree, and the transfer is a success...what then? Do I go into hiding? How long would I have to run? Would they know, suspect that I may have the other half?” She turned back around to them. “What then? And what is the other catch? You said  _ both _ , so what’s the second part?”

Ozpin looked at the others, getting small nods before sighing and stepping forward. Still giving her some space.

“I believe we may have a solution to that. We could hide you away in a place where Amber’s assailants will never find you, or the other Maidens. You all would be safe.” He started calmly.

“And what solution is that?” She asked softly, scared of the answer.

“Izuku Midoriya.” 

Pyrrha felt herself go cold, it was as if all the air was stolen from her lungs. The veins in her body just froze over.

“E-Excuse me…?”

“It’s rather convenient that the kid popped out of nowhere isn’t it? That he-”

“Qrow!” Glynda snapped at him a third time. “Let Ozpin explain.”

Ozpin looked at them and nodded before turning back to Pyrrha. “How much do you know about your friend Miss Nikos? Please, tell us.”

“H-He’s...He’s a nervous person. He’s usually scared of people he’s not familiar with, but he’s more open around Team JNPR and Team RWBY. He’s bright, kind, honest. He’s determined to get a better grasp on his Semblance, and he’s made great strides with it already. He is an excellent analyzer and can come up with plans on the spot.”

“So he’s gained a Semblance?” Ozpin raised an eyebrow. “Interesting.”

“Better rethink that honest bit.” Qrow shook his head. 

“Now now Qrow, I asked him to keep it a secret.” 

“What is so special about Izuku, don’t tell me that he knows all this?”

“No, he does not. But…”

“But you made him part of this plan anyway? How is he important to the plan, and if he’s so important why not tell him this as well?” She raised her voice.

“Please, calm down.” Glynda murmured. “Oz?”

The headmaster was silent before nodding to himself, looking Pyrrha in the eye.

“Your friend, Izuku Midoriya, is not from Remnant. He is not from this world.” 

The room was quiet.

“...What?”

“Do you remember the day your friend appeared? That flash of bright light?”

She nodded.

“Rather strange he didn’t have an Aura, despite seeming to use what looked like a Semblance. Correct?”

Pyrrha stayed quiet, going over that day in her mind.

“The day Young Midoriya appeared, was the day he tried to take his life.”

Pyrrha choked on her breath. “W-What? No, no he would never-”

“And instead of meeting death, his power manifested in what I assume was its full form; and he traversed between worlds. When I spoke to him shortly after he regained consciousness, he had no idea what Remnant was, the Grimm, emblance or Aura. Everything that is considered common knowledge.”

“He didn’t know where he was, though it was clearly Beacon.” She bit her lip, thinking back when she and Jaune met him in that corridor. Trying to calm him down.

“He is from another world, Earth.” He stated simply. “Where instead of Auras and Semblances they have abilities called Quirks. Where powers are based off of genes passed down from parents. His is what I’ve began to call Traversal, the ability to traverse between worlds.”

Pyrrha looked down, biting her lip.

“Why wouldn’t he tell us?”

“Because I asked him to keep that information secret. If someone unfavorable knew of his abilities they may try to take advantage of-”

“Like you are!” Pyrrha shouted. “He doesn’t even know about this, yet you’re already...already making him a vital part of this plan. Why not tell him the same time you told me?”

“Because the kid is no doubt nervous around us, and hearing this stuff from you might set him at ease.” Qrow sighed.

“He will panic.” She insisted.

“Not if it’s from you.”

Pyrrha shook her head. “And if he can’t control this...Quirk? What then?”

“After Ozpin told me about this, I believe that this Quirk of his may behave similarly to a Semblance, but it relies more on his physical strength and endurance. We’ll try our best to help him get a handle on it.”

“So, I’d have to leave my friends, my home, my world! Is that what you’re asking of me?”

“We understand that it is a lot to take in.” Glynda sighed. “But, for keeping the Maidens safe it might be our best bet.”

“Desperate times, desperate measures.” Pyrrha shook her head, looking at Amber again. 

“The assailant that attacked the Fall Maiden has made their first move, and there’s no telling when their next move will be.”


	13. Destiny

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Do you believe in destiny?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The second to last chapter yall
> 
> Also, I have a tumblr @ silverbit if you wanna come yell at me or ask me questions, or even just shoot a message over

Izuku sighed as he stared at the ceiling, arms tucked beneath his head. He couldn’t sleep, his dreams wouldn’t let him. He only got sleep a few minutes at a time before he was jolted awake by a distorted memory. He would wake up in a cold sweat, the burns all over his body felt like they were on fire. And no matter what the taunting words of his tormentor would echo in his head again and again. The shadows and explosions would all blend together into a symphony of pain.

 

Against his better judgment, he checked the time on his scroll. 

 

2:14

 

He groaned and rolled over onto his side, putting the device on the desk. He didn’t want to sleep, but at the same time, he did. He wanted to be awake and alert for the final tournament round. Then again it wasn’t until night, so maybe he could take a day nap.

 

If his friends let him.

 

He sat up and grabbed his scroll again, opening the messaging app and looking at the group chat he was added to a short while ago. The last message was sent around 12:20, Nora saying that Ren better make pancakes for everyone.

 

He sighed and looked through a few of his other messages. Ruby usually sent him funny pictures, Jaune and Pyrrha would send messages asking either where he is or how he’s doing. Ren once sent him a message asking if he wanted any pancakes, then taking back the offer after Nora ate the whole batch apparently. Promising next time.

 

Izuku looked over the messages then closed up the scroll, sitting up and swinging his legs over the bed. He couldn’t sleep, and he didn’t want to lie there with only his thoughts to keep him company. That usually didn’t end well.

 

He slowly got to his feet and grabbed the blanket, wrapping it around himself before pocketing the scroll. He peeked out into the hall, after seeing nothing he stepped out and began walking. He had a basic idea where he was going, after all, he had been there at least once. 

 

The halls were cold this time at night, the blanket hardly kept the cold away. Izuku crept around the halls until he reached the door outside. From there he headed out. The moment he stepped outside he yelped and scrambled to get back inside. It was cold outside!

 

He shivered a bit before looking back at the door.

 

_Maybe I should just go back to my room…_

 

_Just go! It’s gonna be cold whether you like it or not._

 

_But they’re not awake, do you really wanna bother them?_

 

_Just. Go. Even if they’re not awake you’ll be closer to them. That’ll probably help in a way._

 

He groaned to himself and stepped outside again, shivering as he went forward. 

 

“This is so stupid. This is so stupid. This is so stupid!” He told himself as he ran across the courtyard and towards the student dorms.

 

He made it to the dorms in no time and threw the door open before rushing inside. 

 

He shivered as he closed the door to the building behind him. Cold hands pulled the blanket tighter as he looked around. 

 

“So cold, so cold. God, it’s so cold…” 

 

Izuku muttered to himself as he walked down a long hall, seeing a few stairs here and there. In all honesty, he had no idea where the rooms of Team RWBY and JNPR were. That...was a problem.

 

“Maybe I can hang out in the common room, it seems like a better place to sleep than on the floor.” He shuffled forward a bit more before turning a corner and finding an entrance to a large room with couches and small tables scattered here and there. 

 

Across the hall was what looked like a kitchen, a dim light could be seen inside. Some noise was being made in there as well, someone was pacing.

 

He swallowed hard, looking between the two rooms before creeping forward towards the kitchen. The boy slowly looked around the kitchen, seeing the form of someone on the far end. They tried to keep their pacing quiet but failed.

 

Izuku hummed to himself and was about to turn around and head to the common room when he slipped on a part of his blanket.

 

He let out a loud yell in surprise before a thud sounded out.

 

There was a gasp from the kitchen and the person came rushing towards him, he heard them stop a short distance away. “Who’s there?” 

 

Hold on, he knew that voice.

 

He sat up with a groan and pulled the blanket off himself, looking up at the concerned party.

 

“Pyrrha?”

 

She looked shocked to see him, before shifting to confusion. He knelt down and helped him up. “Izuku, what are you doing over here? Do you know what time it is?” She asked.

 

“About 2:30 I’m gonna guess.” He shrugged with a sheepish smile.

 

She stared at him for a moment before sighing. “Is everything alright?”

 

He looked at her for a moment before turning a bit red and looking down. Honestly, now his reasons for coming over felt foolish and really childish.

 

“I uh...I-I couldn’t sleep. And I thought maybe coming here would be better and...I-I’m just gonna head back to my room.” He was about to turn away before Pyrrha spoke up.

 

“It’s okay Izuku, there’s nothing wrong with seeking comfort from friends. Besides, it’s cold outside and...Izuku where are your shoes?”

 

“I kinda left them in my room…”

 

“You ran across the courtyard in your socks?”

 

Izuku pulled the blanket over his face before answering quietly. “Perhaps…?”

 

Pyrrha sighed and shook her head. “At least you didn’t get into any fights with bushes.”

 

“One time!” He raised his voice before earning a soft shush from her. 

 

“People are asleep Izuku. Come on, we can sit in the common room.” She left his side for a second to turn off the dim light. Coming back to guide him to the room across the hall to a comfortable couch.

 

It didn’t take long for Pyrrha to settle down next to Izuku, who had trouble getting comfortable for the most part. They sat in silence for a bit, listening to the hum of the heaters in the room, the wind whooshing, rustling leaves.

 

“You said you couldn’t sleep?” Pyrrha asked after a time.

 

“Y-Yeah. I keep waking up every couple of minutes.”

 

“Why?”

 

“...Nightmares…” He said softly.

 

“Nightmares? May I ask about what?”

 

Izuku gulped before pulling his blanket tighter around himself. He made himself lean back and close his eyes. A shuddering breath escaped his lips.

 

“Should-Should I assume you can’t sleep either?” He asked. 

 

Pyrrha watched him before sighing and nodding. “Yes, I’m having difficulty falling asleep myself as well.”

 

“...Is it about the singles round?” Izuku asked.

 

“No, not quite.” She shook her head. “It does still worry me though.”

 

“Does it have something to do why the teachers called you?” He tilted his head.

 

“Sort of.” She admitted.

 

Izuku hummed and looked straight ahead. “Do you...Do you wanna talk about it?” He asked hesitantly. 

 

“Yes, but also no. I was given a lot of think about...and honestly, it scares me to death.” She looked down, her hands folded on her lap.

 

“Then we can just sit here.” He mumbled leaning back into the soft couch. 

 

“Would you like to talk about your nightmares?” She asked him. 

 

“Yes, but also no.” He repeated her response. “I just...didn’t wanna be alone.” He pulled the blanket over his face.

 

Pyrrha hummed. “That’s okay, then we can just sit here.”

 

Izuku made a noise of agreement and uncovered his face, looking around the darkness of the room before settling back down.

 

They sat there for a bit, not saying much. Izuku would feel his head droop then startle awake again, looking around before relaxing again. Pyrrha would feel him jolt awake and stay quiet as he gathered himself and settled down again, occasionally giving him a small pat on the shoulder to let him know she was still there.

 

She stayed silent for a while, looking over Izuku then straight ahead. He was her friend, but he was a friend from another world. She understood Ozpin told him to keep quiet but...did he feel bad at all for keeping it from them? Or was it killing him on inside to not say anything?

 

Then knowing he wanted to take his life, and the only reason he’s alive was because of his Sem-no his _Quirk_ had activated. It broke her heart.

 

She could only guess this Katsuki had a hand in it. Yang had told them all about him, how Izuku had broken down during training. Why he avoided her. He wasn’t very good at hiding it. The mere thought of that boy hurting Izuku, and for such a petty reason. When Yang told them it was because he had no Semblance or Aura, it clicked. They thought he had no Quirk.

 

She looked over him again, seeing the light bruise on his cheek that was almost faded. If she looked closer she could see a few lines around his neck, like something had attacked him.

 

Suddenly the excuse of him falling into a bush sounded ridiculous. At the dinner he had begun to blackout, was that an effect of using his Quirk? Did his abilities summon something unsavory from another reality? Yet he hadn’t traversed...if something like that was minor and had made him exhausted, would he even be able to make the trip? 

 

The day he appeared and panicked he was asleep for three days, and that was just him making the trip. How would two people affect him?

 

Still, though, she couldn’t lie and say the thought of her friend being from another world wasn’t interesting. What was his home like? Did he have any family other than his mother? Is anyone worried about him? What other sorts of Quirks were there? Was his Quirk common or rare?

 

She sighed and shook her head, feeling Izuku startle awake again. Granted not that hard, he was beginning to drift off.

 

“...Izuku.” She said softly.

 

“H-Huh?” He looked up in confusion.

 

“I have a question for you.” She started.

 

“Okay…”

 

“Do you believe in destiny?” 

 

“Destiny?” Izuku tilted his head.

 

She nodded. “When I think of destiny...I don’t think of a predetermined fate you can’t escape. But rather, some sort of final goal. Something you work towards your entire life.”

 

Izuku shrugged. “Well, I can see that. I guess it makes sense.”

 

“Well...what would you do if something came along that you never expected? Something that had the potential to stand between you and your destiny?” She felt her hands tremble as she continued to speak.

 

“Like…?”

 

“Or what if you could fulfill your destiny in an instant, but at the cost of who you were? And...and the possibility of leaving your friends, your family, your home?” She unintentionally raised her voice, making the boy jump.

 

Izuku looked at her, then looked down. What did she mean? What was she talking about?

 

“Well...honestly I don’t think everything is set in stone even destiny…” He started, grabbing her attention. “I think life has its ways of surprising you, sometimes good and sometimes bad. But I think it depends on the choices we make. Maybe this...worry isn’t your destiny. Maybe it’s a bump in the road, because like you said don’t you work towards it your entire life? How would you fulfill it in an instant?”

 

Pyrrha stared at him for a time, mulling over his words before turning away. 

 

“Besides...if destiny was set in stone I’d probably be dead…” He whispered quietly.

 

“What?”

 

Izuku gulped and shook his head. “N-Nothing!” 

 

She watched him curl in on himself before leaning back.

 

She swallowed hard and watched him, he was trying to get back to sleep.

 

“Izuku?”

 

“Yeah?” He asked.

 

“...Nevermind. I’ll tell you in the morning. Go ahead and go to sleep, don’t worry I’m not going anywhere.”

 

Izuku looked at her in confusion before nodding and settling down again.

 

A few minutes passed and Pyrrha could hear his soft snores, he was finally asleep. Good, he looked exhausted. Now if only _she_ could get to sleep. 

 

“Pyrrha?” She looked up at the voice. Someone was standing at the entrance of the common room. He walked forward and stopped in front of the two.

 

“Jaune.” She smiled.

 

“What are you doing down here? I woke up to get some water and you weren’t in the room, is everything alright?” 

 

She sighed and rubbed her eyes. “I won’t lie, I’m a little frazzled.” She gave him a small smile.

 

He stared at her for a minute before going over and sitting by her side, putting a hand over hers. “Is it about the tournament?”

 

“Something like that…”

 

She felt him squeeze her hand as he responded. “Pyrrha, don’t worry about the tournament. I’m sure you’ll do great. And even if you don’t win...well no will be able to fault you. Because you did your best, and that’s all anyone can ask Pyrrha.”

 

She nodded, looking down as a few tears began to prick at her eyes. “Thank you…” She managed to keep her voice even.

 

“Come on, let’s go back to sleep.” He was about to stand up but Pyrrha shook her head and stayed where she was. She pointed at the sleeping form next to her.

 

Jaune raised an eyebrow and leaned over. ”Is that Izuku?”

 

She nodded. “He couldn’t sleep, he said he didn’t want to be alone. He just dozed off.” 

 

“Oh.” Jaune looked at him then hummed. “Hold on, I’ll be right back.” He went across the room over to a corner where a basket of blankets was placed. He grabbed one and walked back over to them.

 

Before Pyrrha could question what he was doing he sat down and spread the blanket over them. “There, he’s not alone and neither are you.” He smiled down at her.

 

Pyrrha nodded and tentatively leaned onto him, resting her head on his chest.

 

“Thank you…” 

 

She could focus on what she had, here and now. And while she had them, she would cherish it.

 

**-.-**

 

“Now for the moment you’ve all been waiting for, the one on one finals!” 

 

“Izuku come on we’re gonna miss the fight!” Ruby ran alongside Izuku.

 

“Well you’re the one who insisted we go get snacks.” He argued as they raced over to the seats.

 

Well the line was too long and we ran out of time.”

 

“You should have gone earlier!” He argued as he sat beside Jaune and she settled down next to him. Bouncing in excitement.

 

The crowd went wild as the finalists appeared on the stage. Yang grinned at the crowd confidently, as did so many of the other contestants save for one. Pyrrha looked around the crowd nervously, rubbing her arm and keeping her head down.

 

“Is Pyrrha okay?” Izuku looked to Jaune and the others as the two professors explained the rules.

 

“I’m not sure, she seems a bit off.” Jaune frowned. 

 

Pyrrha hadn’t said that much all day, at first everyone assumed she was just steeling herself for the tournament. 

 

“Maybe she’s just a bit nervous, she’s got a lot to live up to ya know?” Ruby chimed in. “World renowned fighter and all that.”

 

“Maybe, it probably doesn’t help that all this is being broadcasted too.”

 

“Pyrrha’s gonna be fine, she’s the best!” Nora smiled, Ren nodding in agreement behind her.

 

They all went quiet as the screens of the stadium lit up and two squares began spinning, faster and faster. 

 

“Wonder who’s gonna be in the first round…” Some of the crowd began to mutter as the squares kept spinning. More and more until they slowed down. There was a loud chime as the first square stopped, landing on Mercury Black. The second square kept rolling for bit until landing on Yang.

 

“Mercury Black versus Yang Xiao Long!”

 

The crowd went wild at the random selection before the two professors spoke up again. “Would all contestants save for the selected two please leave the arena?”

 

The crowd went right back to cheering as the other contestants left the arena. As soon as it was just the two the platform they stood on began to lift off the around. The lights in the arena turned to focus on them.

 

“Break a leg sis!” Ruby yelled. 

 

Yang and Mercury looked over to each other, both putting their arms up and beginning to step towards each other.

 

“Three! Two! One!” 

 

The two were right in front of each other, their hands a breath away from touching.

 

The arena was silent for a split moment.

 

“Fight!”

 

The crowd went wild and Yang drew her fist back and Mercury jumped up to kick at her. A loud boom was heard as his boot and her fist collided.

 

Mercury was blown back a bit but rushed towards her, Yang expected this and jumped over him with the help of her Celicas then released a shot at him, barely missing him.

 

They raced to each other again, blocking blows from one another before they both landed a hit on each other. Blowing each other back a bit.

 

“He fights with his legs, but he’s pretty skilled in hand to hand combat too…” Izuku watched as Yang fired at Mercury from afar. “Meanwhile Yang is only good at hand to hand. I don’t think brute force is gonna get her through this, they’re matched pretty evenly…”

 

“You think she can win?” Weiss asked.

 

“She’s Yang, of course she’ll win!” Ruby smiled.

 

Izuku frowned, he remembered the fight with him and Emerald versus two members of team CFVY. Their defeat was brutal, and even in the four by four rounds they showed no mercy. 

 

“It depends on how dirty they’ll play. Mercury’s team have gotten through with their own brand of brute force and cruelty, Yang’s form of brute force is different…” Izuku shuddered, spotting Emerald from across the arena, seeing her watching the two intently.

 

They watched as Mercury and Yang traded blows again and again, moments where Yang acted to soon and was rewarded with a hard kick. Only to pay it back in kind with a punch of her own. She knocked him back with a blow to the gut and sent him flying away and crashing to the ground, putting some distance between them.

 

Yang grinned and used that to her advantage, switching to long range attacks and forcing him to dodge. Right at the edge of the floating arena he tried to dodge to the side, failing and getting a bullet to the chest, knocking him back and off the arena.

 

“Yeah!” Ruby yelled loudly along with the crowd, thinking Mercury was done for. 

 

Mercury quickly righted himself and propelled himself forward with a shot from hsi boots. He landed in front of Yang and immediately began his assault on her, mainly using his legs. Again and again Yang failed to block, taking the blows and attempting to avoid them.

 

“She doesn’t know how to fight leg attackers.” Izuku frowned.

 

“Yeah...I’m kind of glad we didn’t go up against them in the four by four rounds.” Jaune nodded, watching them. 

 

“Mercury’s relentless…” Izuku hummed, watching them try to get an advantage over the other. “It’s all about reading his attacks but Yang is starting to...what the…”

 

Izuku stopped talking as Mercury began to let off shots from his boots, pivoting around in a circle and creating what looked like a small tornado of bullets.

 

“Woah…” 

 

Yang saw this and raced for Mercury, pulling her fist back before hitting him. Once again blocked before their fists collided. Mercury backed up sightly and brought his leg down on her arms, breaking her guard and making her stumble back before delivering a kick to the chin and knocking her to the air.

 

Mercury jumped up as the tornado of bullets began to descend and kicked her down, blowing himself back before the bullets all collided on her. Creating a large explosion. 

 

The arena cheered as Mercury got up, the smoke having not cleared yet. He looked at where Yang would be and shrugged, turning around and brushing some dust off his shoulder.

 

“Come on, get up...get up.” Ruby muttered, looking at the screen that had their Aura.Yang was near the red, she couldn’t be out yet.

 

“She’s got this, she’s not out just yet.” 

 

“Her Aura is really low…” Blake murmured.

 

“But she has one thing left up her sleeve.” Izuku muttered. “And after all that she might have just enough to knock him out in one go.”

 

Mercury didn’t get that far before a wall of raging flames appeared behind him, quickly dissipating and revealing a very _pissed_ _off_ Yang. She glowered at him before crashing her two fists together, making another large explosion.

 

Izuku felt himself shudder a bit as her red eyes burned holes into Mercury.

 

Yang shouted as she sped towards him, landing a solid hit and knocking him back. She quickly closed the distance and ducked as he tried to kick her away, blocking the third kick and punching him across the face, again and again. Unloading a bullet with each hit before bringing her fist back one final time and punching him in the stomach, earning a yell of pain as his Aura flickered and faded.

 

Before he fell to the ground she landed one more hit and sent him crashing.

 

A loud buzzer went off as Mercury fell to the ground, signaling the end of the fight.

 

“What a way to kick off the finals!” 

 

The members of Team RWBY and JNPR, along with Izuku took a sigh of relief.

 

“That was way too close.” Weiss sighed.

 

“I knew she’d pull it off!” Ruby cheered. “That’s team RWBY for you!”

 

“She got lucky.” Izuku rubbed his eyes. “Her Aura was right _there_.”

 

“Guess she knows what to improve on in the future, either way that was a great fight.” Jaune nodded.

 

“Yeah! Go Yang!” Nora shouted as Ren clapped.

 

“Yang Xiao Long wins!” 

 

The arena slowly lowered to the floor as Yang put a fist up in the air, grinning at the crowd.

 

“Way to go Yang!” Blake cheered.

 

Yang sighed as she wiped some sweat from her brow, smiling down at the recovering Mercury. “Better luck next time.” She waved before turning around.

 

Mercury growled as he looked up. “There’s not gonna _be_ a next time Blondie.”

 

Yang stopped in her tracks, turning around to see Mercury flying towards her about to land a blow.

 

Out of instinct she attacked and hit his leg, a sickening crack was heard as Mercury screamed in pain.

 

“My word!”

 

“Cut the cameras!” The two announcers shouted.

 

The crowd stood up and looked down at Yang, shouting and booing at her.

 

“Agh...my leg. My leg! Mercury shouted, holding the leg that Yang broke.

 

Yang frowned at him. “That’s what you get you little-huh?” She stopped mid-sentence as she was surrounded by Atlas soldiers.

 

“Yang Xiao Long, stand down!”

 

“What? Why?” She demanded.

 

Emerald jumped down from the stands and and rushed over to Mercury. “Mercury!”

 

He looked at her as he held his leg. “Why did she do that? Why’d she attack me?!”

 

Yang glared at the two, confused. She looked up to one of the screens to see what had happened. She had been walking past him, and stopped as he got up. He looked like he was saying something along the lines of ‘good fight’ before she put a bullet through his leg, sending him to the ground.

 

She looked up to her friends in the stands. They were all staring down at her in a mixture of confusion and horror. Izuku looked utterly terrified, Ruby could only stare in disbelief.

 

She felt her heart sink, looking around and seeing everyone jeering and booing at her.

 

“But…” She couldn’t get another word out as she was led away by the soldiers. 

 

**-.-**

 

“So the next match has been delayed a bit huh?” Izuku asked as he traced patterns in the desk.

 

“Yeah, they’re waiting for everyone to settle down and...yeah.” Jaune sighed. He was leaning against the door of their room, hearing a loud shout from the room across before there was the sound of the door opening and closing.

 

Team JNPR followed Team RWBY back to the dorms where Yang was escorted. They had seen General Ironwood enter the girls’ room before they filed into theirs. Izuku was about to head back to his own room when the others invited him in.

 

Jaune waited until there was another door click, hurriedly opening the door to see three members of Team RWBY standing in the hall, looking a bit upset.

 

“Is she doing okay?” Jaune asked. Everyone in the room peered over his shoulder to look at the three.

 

Blake sighed as she looked down. “She’s doing the best she can.”

 

“I heard Mercury and his team rushed back to Mistral to be with his family. So until he lands no one can question him on what happened.”

 

“If there is anything we can do, please don’t hesitate to ask.” Ren spoke up.

 

“Alright then...if that’s the case…” Ruby looked down, fiddling with her hands before looking up. “Pyrrha?” 

 

Pyrrha who had just sat down looked up. “Hmm?”

 

“You be sure to win one for Beacon, okay?” She smiled.

 

“It’s what Yang would want.” Weiss nodded.

 

Pyrrha stared at them for a bit, looking away before sighing and looking back up to them. “I’ll do my best.” She smiled.

 

“I’ll be sure to watch tonight in case you’re picked!” Ruby grinned.

 

Blake sighed and shook her head. “Honestly, I think I’ve had enough fighting for one year.”

 

Weiss nodded. “Ditto. Coffee?”

 

“Tea.”

 

“Soda.” Izuku muttered to himself.

 

“Huh?” Ruby looked over.

 

“Don’t worry about it.” He waved his hands.

 

“...okay. We’ll see you guys later.” Ruby smiled before turning to walk away. Jaune watched them walk off before closing the door. He turned around, looking over Pyrrha. He frowned to himself and opened his mouth to speak, Nora beat him to the punch though.

 

“You heard the lady!” Nora got into Pyrrha’s face, wearing workout clothes that seemed to come out of nowhere. “No more moping around! We gotta get your butt in shape for the big fight!”

 

“How did she change so fast?” Izuku asked, 

 

“She’s Nora. That’s how.” Jaune answered.

 

“It could be today! It could be tomorrow! It could be the most important fight of your life!” Nora picked up a large set of weight that _also_ seemed to come out of nowhere.

 

She was only able to hold it for so long before falling over.

 

“Is she okay…?” Izuku watched her, Nora wasn’t moving.

 

“I think so.”

 

Pyrrha had a small smile on her face as she watched Nora. “Um…”

 

“Nora’s right.” Ren nodded, standing on the other side of the room with a pink apron on that said ‘Please do nothing to the cook’.

 

“Where did he get the apron?” Izuku was growing increasingly confused.

 

“Just go with it.” Jaune patted his head.

 

“You can’t let your concern for Yang hold you back. You need to focus. You’ll be defending the honor of Beacon.” Ren continued.

 

“Are you guys trying to make her feel better or…” Izuku started.

 

“This blend of herbs and vegetables is filled with nutrients vital to your body’s well being.”

 

“Oh..that’s-”

 

“Please, there’s no need to thank me.” He smiled.

 

Nora stood up in a hurry, looking over the concoction in Ren’s hand.

 

“Thank you?! Ugh, that looks like slime from a lake-bed!”

 

“Algae contains numerous spectacular properties.” Ren almost sounded offended,

 

“That stuff is as green as Izuku!” She argued.

 

“H-Hey!” He turned a bit red, a hand going up to hold his hair held back by the hair band. “I’m not _that_ green…”

 

“Hmph, well see for yourself.” Ren let her take a sip of the drink.

 

Not a second passed before Nora gagged and shook her head, rushing over to the nearest trash can before retching loudly.

 

Pyrrha let out a small giggle and Nora looked up in horror.

 

“What is wrong with you?!”

 

“Me?” Ren raised an eyebrow. “You’re the one that wasted perfectly good juice.”

 

“We’re supposed to help Pyrrha not poison her.”

 

“There was absolutely nothing wrong with that.” Jaune looked between the two before looking to Pyrrha, noticing her downtrodden look.

 

“If it looks the same coming up as it does going down, then there’s something wrong!”

 

“Well...I mean she’s not wrong.” Izuku shrugged.

 

“See? Even the Green Bean agrees with me!”

 

“Would you like to try some Izuku?” Ren offered.

 

“Don’t poison him too it’s bad enough you made me drink that stuff!”

 

“I didn’t make you. I offered it, and you took it.”

 

“And that was clearly a mistake.”

 

Izuku grabbed the glass silently, looking it over. It looked like one of those kale smoothies they sold everywhere back in his world. He hummed before taking a sip.

 

Nora gasped as she saw this and rushed over, grabbing his face harshly.

 

“Spit that out! Spit that out right now!”

 

Izuku shook his head and swallowed the bitter liquid, shuddering violently. He shook his head as Nora let him go.

 

“It’s kinda bitter…” He shuddered again. “And…” There was a moment before he slammed his face into the desk. Nora poked at him but didn’t get a response.

 

Nora gasped. “Oh my god, Ren you killed him!”

 

“I did no such thing.” 

 

“Hey, guys.” Jaune separated them. “Come on, why don’t we get some fresh air.” He smiled at Pyrrha, who nodded softly.

  
  


**-.-**

 

“What am I going to do…”

 

She asked no one in particular, only getting an answer from the wind. She felt the cold air run itself through her hair, stopping after a moment and leaving an orange leaf at her side.

 

Her hands shook as she gently picked up the leaf, looking it over.

 

“I have to tell him, but how am I supposed to do that?” She blinked back tears as the leaf shook with her hands. “How do I ask him to leave all this...to leave our friends behind? Jaune, I can’t leave him either. Nora, Ren…” She shuddered as the wind began to blow again.

 

“It feels selfish.”

 

She took a shuddering breath and opened her hand, letting the leaf go and watching it fly away. 

 

She sighed and rubbed her eyes, she didn’t want to leave her world. Her home, and she didn’t want to leave her friends. Even if she could bring them all with her what kind of toll would that be on Izuku? Would he even be able to handle it? 

 

Where would they go? Where would they end up? What if they ended up in Izuku’s original world, what then?

 

“Hey.” She was pulled from her thoughts by a warm voice, prompting her to look up. There she saw Jaune holding some cotton candy. “It’s no green goop, but I think it still might do some good.” He smiled.

 

Pyrrha stared at him for a moment before nodding and grabbing it. “Um...right. Thank you, Jaune.” 

 

Jaune watched her, seeing her look down. She looked upset. He looked over to the corner to see Ren and Nora waltzing over to the scene, Ren’s arms full of treats and focusing on not dropping anything. Nora froze midstep, seeing Jaune and Pyrrha together.

 

“Uh...come on Ren, let's go back to the fairgrounds. I’ll win you another stuffed animal!”

 

Izuku wasn’t dragged away at the moment appearing a moment after Nora dragged Ren away. He looked like he was muttering to himself, about what only he could know.

 

“You too Green Bean!” Nora hurried over and grabbed his hood, hurriedly dragging him off.

 

“Agh! N-Nora! Nora you’re choking me!” He gasped.

 

Jaune sighed before looking back over to Pyrrha, going over and sitting next to her. He waited before speaking.

 

“You were the first person to ever believe in me, you know that?” He started, making her look up. “Even when I told my parents I was going to Beacon, they told me not to worry if I ended up having to move back home. How depressing is that?” 

 

Pyrrha stammered. “I-I’m sure...they didn’t mean-” She gasped as he grabbed her hand, warm and comforting, surprising her and making her drop the cotton candy.

 

She looked down at their hands before looking up. 

 

“I guess I’m just trying to say that…You’ve always been there for me. Even when I didn’t deserve it. And I can tell there’s something on your mind, so...I dunno...How can I help?” 

 

Pyrrha stared at him for a bit before smiling, and leaning to rest her head on his shoulder. 

 

“You’re already doing it.”

 

Jaune went stiff at first, before relaxing and smiling himself. It took a moment before he let himself lean back and rest his head atop hers. Her hair tickled his face.

 

They sat there for a while, listening to the world around them. The wind blowing, trees rustling, the distant sounds of people talking and laughing. Running around and enjoying themselves.

 

“Jaune?” 

 

Pyrrha sat up slowly.

 

“Hmm?”

 

She slowly took her hand back.

 

“I...I don’t know what to do.” She shook her head.

 

“W-What do you mean?” He looked at her in confusion.

 

Pyrrha looked down before looking up at the sky, watching the clouds pass by. She wrung her hands as she asked the question again.

 

“D...Do you believe in destiny?”

 

“Destiny?”

 

She nodded. “You see, when I think of destiny I don’t think of a predetermined fate you can’t escape, but rather some sort of final goal. Something you work towards your entire life.”

 

Jaune tilted his head. “Okay...yeah. Sure I can see that.”

 

“Okay. Well..what if something came up. Something that you never expected, something that could stand in the way between you and your destiny?”

 

“Like…”

 

“But what if this supposed obstacle was what you needed? It’s how you fulfill your destiny? Or what if you had a choice? What would be the right choice? And what if you would end up losing yourself? Losing who you were?!”

 

Jaune looked at her in a bit of shock and confusion.

 

“Pyrrha, you’re not making any sense.” He tried to put a hand on her shoulder, only for her to brush it off and stand up.

 

“None of it makes sense Jaune! This isn’t how things were supposed to happen!”

 

Jaune stood up.

 

“I’m sorry! P-Please, I-I’m just trying to understand what’s wrong.” He took a few steps towards her.

 

“...I’ve always felt as if I was destined to become a Huntress. To protect the world. And it’s becoming increasingly clear to me that my feelings were right...but perhaps not in the way that I thought.”

 

“Pyrrha…”

 

“I don’t know if I can do it.”

 

“Of course you can.” Jaune said, without missing a beat. “The Pyrrha Nikos I know doesn’t back down from a challenge. And if you really believe it’s your destiny to save the world, you can’t let anything stand in your way.”

 

Pyrrha gasped softly, staring at him and putting her hands up to cover her mouth. She turned away, starting to cry.

 

Jaune’s face fell. “Pyrrha?”

 

“What...what if fulfilling this...d-destiny meant losing me? What if...What if I had to lose you?”

 

Jaune stopped in his tracks. “What?”

 

“What if I h-had to leave? What if you, or Nora, or Ren, couldn’t join me? What if I couldn’t make it back?!”

 

“Pyrrha? What are you talking about? Why would…” He stepped forward, reaching a hand forward.

 

She took a step back. “Stop…”

 

Jaune bit his lip. “Did-Did I say something wrong?”

 

“Stop!” She yelled, throwing a hand out and sending Jaune flying into a pillar, held up by his armor.

 

Jaune groaned and looked down to where she was, watching her look up in horror before dropping him. “Jaune!”

 

He gasped and coughed as he got to his knees. “Pyrrha…”

 

She took a step back, sobbing. “I’m...I’m sorry!” She turned and ran away as quickly as she could.

 

“Pyrrha wait!” 

 

He tried to get up and run after her, falling over after a few steps. His head was still spinning.

 

“What did I say?” 

 


End file.
